Not all heroes wear capes, but some do come with padded gloves. That's how fans are hailing Conan Ledesma, who helped save a fan during Cadiz vs Barcelona football match on Saturday. (More Football News)
In the 81st minute of La Liga game at the Estadio Nuevo Mirandilla, the supporter suffered a cardiac arrest in the home end.
Cadiz goalkeeper Conan Ledesma was one of the first to realise the medical situation, and his prompt action possibly helped save the fan's life.
Ledesma stopped the game and fetched a defibrillator from the Barcelona camp. The 29-year-old Argentine then sprinted across the pitch and threw the medical kit into the stands.
Advertisement
Watch it here:
Cadiz later released a statement, detailing the turn of events.
“When the 81st minute was completed, the match against Fútbol Club Barcelona was paused as a result of a health alert in the south end stands. The protocol established with the Red Cross quickly became operational, assisting a man in cardiac arrest.
"One of the medical teams with a defibrillator and monitor moved to the stands, beginning the resuscitation tasks. At the same time, Fútbol Club Barcelona offered a second defibrillator in case its use was necessary, being moved to the area by the players themselves.
"The resuscitation was positive after a few minutes, and the fan was transferred to the ICU of the Puerta del Mar Hospital where he remains admitted.
Advertisement
"In addition, one of the Tribuna camera operators suffered a fainting spell that was also quickly treated by the stadium’s medical staff without major consequences.
"The entity wants to thank the exemplary behavior of the South Fund fans in this situation, as well as the members of security and the Red Cross for their prompt action so that this incident had a happy ending."
The match was halted for more than half-hour, but Barcelona registered a comfortable 4-0 win to go top of the table.
Barcelona boss Xavi Hernandez said that they would have called off the game if anything had happened to the fan. By the incident happened, Barca were already 2-0 up.
"Fortunately, they were able to resuscitate him. It was a very unpleasant situation," Xavi said in his post-match press conference. "We hope he and his family are well. It is a difficult situation. We agreed to restart the match and we have been waiting for developments.
"We hope for a speedy recovery. It was a matter of humanity. The human quality comes out. Football comes after life and if anything had happened to him the game would have been suspended."
Barca star Pedri said that "the result today is the least important. What matters is the health of the Cadiz Fan. A lot of strength for him and his family."
Advertisement
Cadiz have lost all their matches so far, and are rooted at the bottom of the table. They have conceded 14 goals without scoring in five matches.
