Samona boxing coach Lionel Elika Fatupaito died in Paris at the 2024 Olympic Games. The International Boxing Association announced on Saturday.
Fatupaito was 60. He reportedly passed away due to a cardiac arrest.
Aadi Nair of Reuters shared the statement that the IBA released of Fatupaito’s death.
“We at the IBA extend our heartfelt condolences to the family, friends, and colleagues of Lionel Elika Fatupaito, the national boxing coach of Samoa, who tragically passed away during Paris 2024.
“Lionel’s dedication and passion for the sport have left an indelible mark on the boxing community. His legacy will continue to inspire future generations. Our thoughts and prayers are with Team Samoa and all those affected by this profound loss.”
According to AFP, Fatupaito suffered a cardiac arrest while at the Olympic Village. he was quickly treated by emergency services, and his cause of death is listed as “natural causes.”
Fatupaito was in Paris to coach heavyweight Ato Plodzicki-Faoagali, one of the 24 Olympians Samoa has representing their country. Plodzicki-Faoagali is the only boxer representing his country, and he is scheduled to box Belgium’s Victor Schelstraete on Sunday.
Plodzicki-Faoagali shared a heartfelt message for his coach on his Instagram story.
“No words can express how I feel but rest in love coach Lionel,” Plodzicki-Faoagali, 25, wrote on his Instagram story. “Our last picture together before you passed yesterday Grand Master.”
“I first met coach Lionel when I was 15 trialling for Samoa’s Youth team. He was a kind and generous coach, not only with his time, material things, but also his knowledge,” Plodzicki-Faoagali wrote, alongside a photo of himself and Fatupaito. “You will be sorely missed coach … Rest well old man, gonna miss you out there, you were the calm one and dad the storm of our corner.”
The 25-year-old boxer is 2-0 as a professional boxer and won a gold medal at the 2023 Pacific Games. Plodzicki-Faoagali also competed in the 2020 Olympic games in Tokyo and lost only one fight to Belarus’ Uladzislau Smiahlikau.
Plodzicki-Faoagali is competing in his second Olympics and is a top medal contender.
Fatupaito is the sixth coach to pass away during the Olympics in modern history. The last head coach to pass away at the Olympics was in 2016 at Rio de Janeiro when German canoe slalom coach and former silver medalist Stefan Henze died from injuries sustained in a taxi cab crash.
The other four coaches who passed during the Olympics were all Israeli hostages killed during the Munich Olympics massacre in 1972.
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