Goal celebration costs India hopeful his life

Peter Biaksangzuala, 23, fell backwards on his head as he took a series of somersaults after scoring the equaliser for his team in a local match in Khawzawl town close to India’s eastern border with Myanmar last Tuesday, the Times of India said.

As he lay on the ground in pain, unsuspecting team-mates jumped on him to celebrate before they realised the extent of the injury and summoned an stretcher to rush him to hospital.

Biaksangzuala died on Sunday after his condition deteriorated in hospital as doctors attempted to repair his damaged spine, the newspaper quoted hospital staff as saying.

Lal Hmar, a football official in Mizoram state, told reporters in capital Aizawl that the young footballer had donated his eyes before his death.

“Peter was a very talented player who dreamt of playing in the national league,” Hmar said. “His death has come as a big shock to all of us. We all thought he will recover.”

Hmar said the local association was planning to hold a charity match in Biaksangzuala’s memory.

Footballers are known to injure themselves while celebrating a goal, but there is no recorded instance of it causing a death. (AFP)