Brain-dead Chinese teen footballer dies hours before 19th birthday
Guo Jiaxuan, the Chinese footballer left fighting for his life following a collision during a match in Madrid last month, has died in Beijing hours before his 19th birthday, his brother has revealed.
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The teenager had been on life support in hospital in the Chinese capital since his family asked to bring him home from Spain, where he had been attending a training camp.
He was left brain-dead after suffering a subarachnoid haemorrhage – a form of stroke caused by bleeding on the surface of the brain – when his head connected with another player's knee.
Guo Jiayi, his brother, again hit out at football officials on Thursday, criticising a number of their statements, including their claim to have clarified the circumstances of the accident.
He had previously accused Guo's club and football association in Beijing of failing to cover the medical bills and queried whether insurance cover was in place.
Guo Jiaxuan being loaded onto a chartered flight back to Beijing. Photo: WeChat
'[On Wednesday], the Tiantan Hospital Neurosurgery Centre informed us that Jiaxuan was in a critical condition and [they] were unable to treat him,' Guo Jiayi wrote on social media.
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