It’s not just Team GB athletes who are experiencing their “Olympic moment” at the Paris Games.
Team GB boxing doctor Harj Singh and physio Robbie Lillis have emerged as heroes after helping save the life of Team GB head coach Uzbekistan boxing team.
Tulkin Kilichev was celebrating Uzbek boxer Hasanboy Dusmatov’s gold medal win over Frenchman Billal Bennama in the Roland Garros warm-up area on Thursday night when he suffered a cardiac arrest.
Fortunately for the trainer, Dr. Singh and Mr. Lillis were able to rush to his aid and perform CPR and administer a shock using a defibrillator, respectively.
“THE [Uzbek] The coaching staff went back to the warm-up area and everyone was celebrating, and then there were screams from that area that weren’t celebrations,” Lillis said.
“There was a cry for a doctor, for help. Harj was the first person to respond and I followed with the emergency trauma bag we carried with us.”
The physiotherapist said many trainers were “visibly distressed” by the ordeal, but that didn’t stop him from placing defibrillator pads on Kilichev and administering a recommended shock.
“Initially he didn’t come back, but about 20 to 30 seconds later, after Harj continued to do CPR, he suddenly came back conscious with us, which was great,” Lillis said.
The boxing trainer was then taken to hospital by the local medical team, where his condition is known to be stable.
Hasanboy Dusmatov. Photo: Reuters
The general secretary of Uzbekistan’s boxing federation, Shohid Tillaboev, later posted on Instagram to say that winning the gold medal was the “happiest moment”, but the celebrations were not the same with the coach’s absence.
Tillaboev wrote: “He is the best mentor! He is a real hero!”
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Singh said he and Lillis will visit Kilichev while he recovers, adding that the whole ordeal really “puts things into perspective.”
“It all happened so quickly,” he said. “At some point we will try to go to the hospital. If that can be arranged, I think it would be very exciting for both of us.”
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Team GB’s medical staff undergo regular training at the UK Sports Institute, including an on-field trauma course to prepare for extreme circumstances.
Lillis admitted the adrenaline from the experience meant he couldn’t sleep that night, but he’s grateful to have helped someone stay alive.
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“It’s definitely not my day job and I wouldn’t want to make it a routine, but luckily, having had the training, I was able to do it,” he said.
“My mom said something really cool, she said, ‘That’s your Olympic moment.’ It’s something I’ll obviously remember, I don’t think I’ll forget it anytime soon.”
This story originally appeared on News.sky.com read the full story
