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Cameroon's Marc-Vivien Foe: A friend of football who died playing

Cameroon's Marc-Vivien Foe: A friend of football who died playing

Cameroon

Marc-Vivien Foe, was a Cameroonian international and professional footballer who gained global fame following his death during an international competitive fixture in the FIFA Confederations Cup years ago.

He died on 26 June 2003, when the Indomitable Lions of Cameroon took on Columbia in the semi-final clash of the competition. He had played in victories against Brazil and Turkey but was rested for the game against the United States ahead of the Colombia fixture.

We present you some key facts about Marc-Vivien Foé – undoubtedly a friend of the game and one who the game remembers long after his passing.

Marc-Vivien Foé – A Friend of the Game

1. Marc-Vivien Foé (1 May 1975 – 26 June 2003) was a born in Yaounde

2. He played as a midfielder for the Indomitable Lions and also at club level

3. He started out with capital based side, Canon Yaounde, he won the Cameroon Cup in 1993.

4. He played for Lens between 1994 – 1999 making 85 appearances and scoring 11 times, at Lens he won the 1998 French league title.

5. He spent a season at West Ham United £4.2 million in January 1999 (1999-2000) with one goal from 48 appearances

6. He returned to France to join Lyon on £6 million transfer between 2000-2003, 43 appearances and three goals.

7. In 2001 he won the Coupe de la Ligue in 2001, and the league title with Lyon.

8. His international debut was against Mexico in September 1993.

9. He was part of the Cameroon squad for the 1994 World Cup, starting all three of their matches.

10. Due to a broken leg at Cameroon’s pre-World Cup training camp, he missed the 1998 World Cup.

11. He made squad for Cameroon in the 2002 World Cup. As in 1994, he played in all of Cameroon’s matches.

12. In the 72nd minute of the match against Colombia, Foé collapsed in the centre circle. After failed on-field resuscitation, he was stretchered off the field, where he received mouth-to-mouth resuscitation and oxygen. Medics spent 45 minutes attempting to restart his heart, and although he was still alive upon arrival at the stadium’s medical centre he died shortly afterwards.

An autopsy concluded that Foé‘s death was heart-related as it discovered evidence of hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, a condition known to increase the risk of sudden death during physical exercise.

On the occasion of his fourteenth year after death, a series of tweets from the football fraternity has been celebrating the memory of the Cameroonian number 17 man at the time slumped and died at the State de Gerland in Lyon, France.

Leading the pack was the Cameroonian football federation (FECAFOOT)

Shaban Abdur Rahman Alfa
Digital journalist
Pointe-Noire, Republic of Congo
alfa.shaban@africanews.com

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