Calls for mass screening after death of young player

THE sudden death of a fit young sports star has fuelled calls for the mass cardiac screening of children playing competitive sports and for athletic organisations to invest in portable defibrillators.

Ken Byrne, a 25-year-old from Cuffsgrange in Kilkenny, collapsed and died during a cup final match on Saturday.

He is one of four young athletes known to have died suddenly this year, following Tyrone GAA player Cormac McAnallen, who died after a virus attacked his heart, Irish Under-19 rugby star John McCall, who suffered cardiac arrest playing in South Africa, and an unidentified man in his early 20s who died some months ago while playing soccer.