A cardiac arrest can happen to anyone at any time, a fact Tottenham Hotspur defender Japhet Tanganga has been reminded of this summer.
Last month Tanganga’s former Spurs team-mate Christian Eriksen collapsed on the pitch during Denmark’s UEFA Euro 2020 match against Finland.
Eriksen was saved by the quick actions and skills of paramedics who were at the match. But others are not as fortunate.
Two years ago, the club’s former defender and Leyton Orient manager Justin Edinburgh died after suffering a cardiac arrest at the age of 49.
“What happened at the Euros with Christian was a shock and I think it’s important that everybody from that knows what to do in that situation,” Tanganga told Spurs’ official website.
Tanganga joins in with CPR training
Ahead of last Saturday’s pre-season friendly with Orient, Tanganga visited Riverley Primary School to take part in a Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (CPR) training event for children hosted by The JE3 Foundation – a charity set up in Edinburgh’s memory.
“It’s important that this is something which is on everybody’s mind and everyone has it in their locker to help somebody in that position,” said Tanganga.
“After today I feel a lot more confident about it and if I was to encounter somebody in that position I would be able to help them.”
Last month, the Premier League announced it will fund the provision of Automated External Defibrillators (AED) at more than 2,000 grassroots clubs and facilities, with the aim of helping to save the life of someone experiencing a cardiac arrest.
The Premier League Defibrillator Fund rollout began this week, with the first AED installed at Southfields Academy in London.
See: PL Defibrillator Fund installations begin at grassroots facilities
