(Sports Correspondent: Imran Sohail)
Italian Orienteering Athlete Mattia Debertolis Dies During World Games in Chengdu
CHENGDU — Italian orienteering competitor Mattia Debertolis has passed away following an incident at the World Games in Chengdu, China. The 29-year-old was found unresponsive during a men’s middle-distance event on August 8 and died four days later, the World Games organizers and International Orienteering Federation (IOF) confirmed.
Debertolis, from Primiero, Italy, was competing in the six-kilometre course, featuring 20 control points and 180 metres of ascent, in intense heat exceeding 30°C. Despite immediate medical care at a leading Chinese hospital, he could not be revived.
Ranked 137th in the Orienteering World Rankings, Debertolis had represented Italy in multiple World Championships and World Cups since 2014. He was also pursuing a PhD at KTH Royal Institute of Technology in Stockholm.
In tribute, the Italian Orienteering Federation (FISO) announced that its athletes will wear black armbands at the upcoming World Mountain Bike Orienteering Championships in Poland.
