The doctor commented on the death of 27-year-old biathlete Bakken.
General practitioner, cardiologist Andrey Kondrakhin expressed the opinion that Norwegian biathlete Sivert Bakken could have died due to excessive exertion.
"There is such a thing as an athlete's heart. It is initially overloaded with training. And for a biathlete, perhaps, it turned out to be fatal. He could have simply overtrained," Kondrakhin said in an interview with aif.ru on Friday, December 26th.
The doctor noted that high-performance sports are associated with extreme stress and the issue of health often fades into the background. He recalled that Bakken was forced to suspend his career in 2022 due to pericarditis and returned to full-fledged training only in the summer of 2024.
The expert explained that pericarditis is an inflammation of the outer lining of the heart and usually does not affect the heart muscle, however, an accurate diagnosis is necessary for conclusions, as complications are possible. Meanwhile, the police are continuing the investigation, the official cause of death of the athlete has not yet been named.
Earlier on December 26, the Norwegian Olympic Committee issued a statement after the death of Sievert Bakken. It says that the committee "does not recommend the use of altitude simulators for athletes who can use it," writes RT.
Bakken was found dead in a hotel room in Lavazza, Italy, on December 23. He was wearing a hypoxic mask, NSN notes. The 27-year-old athlete was at a winter resort for alpine training and trained during the Christmas break in the World Cup. On December 21, Bakken held his last race in his life, finishing 20th in the mass start at the World Cup in Annecy, France. His death became known on December 23.
Bakken is a two-time winner of the Youth Olympic Games. The biathlete became the European champion three times, as well as the winner of the World Cup stage.
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