Luton Town's Captain Suffers Cardiac Arrest During Premier League Game

An English Premier League match between Luton Town and Bournemouth was abandoned after 59 minutes when one of Luton's players suffered a cardiac arrest. Defender and team captain Tom Lockyer collapsed with the score tied 1-1 and was quickly attended to by medical staff. "Our medical staff have confirmed that the Hatters captain suffered cardiac arrest on the pitch, but was responsive by the time he was taken off on the stretcher," Luton Town said in a statement on X.

Furthermore, the club confirmed that Lockyer was in stable condition. "He received further treatment inside the stadium, for which we once again thank the medical teams from both sides. Tom was transferred to hospital, where we can reassure supporters that he is stable. He is currently undergoing further tests with his family at his bedside," the club's statement continued. He is the latest high-profile athlete to suffer cardiac arrest. Bronny James, son of LeBron, recently made his college debut after suffering cardiac arrest in July. Meanwhile, back in 2020, Denmark's Christian Eriksen suffered a cardiac arrest during the team's opening game at the European Championships.

Luton Town Thank Bournemouth For Lockyer Response

Elsewhere, Luton thanked their opponents for the rapid response to Lockyer. "We don't know the full extent of what happened and what the next steps are at this stage. But we thank Bournemouth and the medical staff on both sides for their immediate response, which was absolutely amazing. We are sorry to all supporters present that players from both sides were in no state of mind to continue with the game after seeing their much-loved teammate and friend taken off like that. And the staff could not carry on with managing the game in such circumstances having had to deal with the situation. And we thank everyone for the wonderful applause and singing of Locks' name inside the stadium at such a difficult time," the team's statement said in part.

However, it's not the first time that Lockyer has collapsed due to heart issues. During Luton's championship playoff win in May, Lockyer collapsed 12 minutes into the game and was stretched off. He subsequently spent five days in hospital. Furthermore, he underwent surgery for atrial fibrillation, which causes the heart to beat too fast.

[via]