Italian Marco Simoncelli
has died from the injuries he sustained in a crash in the Malaysian MotoGP race.
He was 24.
Simoncelli was fighting for fourth position when he lost the front of his bike
and slid across the circuit, into the path of Colin Edwards and Valentino Rossi,
both of whom hit Simoncelli's Honda.
Simoncelli lay stricken on the track after the crash, his helmet having come off
during the incident.
He was taken by ambulance to the circuit's medical center, but at 4.56pm local
time it was announced he had succumbed to his injuries.
The Medical Director at the circuit Michele Macchiagodena explained: "I'm very
sad to be here to report about the death of Marco Simoncelli, a friend. Because
of the crash he had during the race, in which he was hit by other riders, he
suffered a very serious trauma to the head, to the neck and the chest. When our
medical staff got to him he was unconscious. In the ambulance because there was
a cardiac arrest they started CPR (cardiac pulmonary resuscitation). Immediately
in the Medical Centre, with the help also of the Doctor of our staff at the
Clinica Mobile and local Doctors, he was intubated and it was possible to take
off some blood from the thorax. The CPR was continued for 45 minutes because we
tried to help him for as long as we thought it was possible. Unfortunately it
was not possible to help him and at 16:56 (local time) we had to declare he was
dead."
Simoncelli had established himself as one of the most exciting new stars in
MotoGP this season and has just recently signed an extension to his contract
for the next season.
This news comes after another motorsport star, Dan Wheldon, lost his life in the
IndyCar race in Las Vegas last weekend.
More information:
http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/95629