LUSELL, Qatar (AP) — Grant Wall, one of America’s best-known football writers, died early Saturday while covering the World Cup match between Argentina and the Netherlands.
American media, who sat near him, said Val collapsed in his seat in the area reserved for journalists in the iconic Lusail stadium during the extra-time period of the game, and the reporter next to him called for help. Emergency services responded quickly, the reporter said, before being told Val had died.
On Wednesday, Val tweeted that he celebrated his birthday that day. American journalists who knew Val said he was 49 years old.
“We can always count on Grant to deliver insightful and entertaining stories about our games and their main protagonists,” US Soccer Association says in a statement. “Grant believes strongly in the power of the game to advance human rights and has been and will continue to be an inspiration for all. Grant made football his life’s work and we are sad that he and his great work will no longer be with us Shock.”
Val is covering his eighth World Cup.He wrote on his website on Monday that he visited a clinic While in Qatar.
“My body finally broke down. Three weeks of sleep deprivation, stress and a lot of work can take its toll on you,” Wahl wrote. “The cold of the past 10 days got worse on the night of the US v Holland game and I could feel the new pressure and discomfort in my upper chest.”
Wahl wrote that he tested negative for COVID-19 and sought treatment.
“I went to the medical clinic in the main media center today and they said I might have bronchitis. They gave me a course of antibiotics and some strong cough syrup and I felt better in a few hours. But still: no Bueno,” he wrote.
On November 11, Wall wore a rainbow T-shirt in support of LGBTQ rights for the US World Cup opener against Wales. twenty one And wrote that security refused him entry and told him to take off his shirt. In the conservative Muslim country of Qatar, gay and lesbian behavior is criminalized.
Wahl wrote that he was detained for 25 minutes at the Ahmed Bin Ali stadium in Al Rayyan before being released by a security commander. Val said FIFA apologized to him.
US State Department spokesman Ned Price Tweet late Friday: “We are deeply saddened to learn of Grant Wahl’s death and extend our condolences to his family, with whom we have been in close contact. We are engaging with senior Qatari officials to ensure the family’s wishes are fulfilled as soon as possible. “
Wahl is survived by his wife, Dr. Wahl. Celine Gounder is an associate professor at NYU School of Medicine, an attending physician at Bellevue Hospital Center, and a contributor to CBS News.
Goodell tweeted that she was grateful for the support of her husband’s “soccer family” and the friends who reached out.
“I was in complete shock,” she wrote.
Before Wahl started covering football exclusively, one of his works was a cover story for Sports Illustrated About LeBron James in 2002, when James was a junior at Saint Louis University. Vincent St. Mary High School in Akron, Ohio.
“He’s always been cool to be around. He spends a lot of time in my hometown of Akron,” James said in Philadelphia after the Los Angeles Lakers’ overtime loss to the Sixers. “Whenever his name comes up, I always think of Grant as a teenager in our building in St. All the best with his family. May he rest in peace in heaven.”
Val, who sometimes votes in FIFA’s annual awards, wrote this week that he is one of 82 journalists honored by FIFA and the international sports press association AIPS for their participation in eight or more World Cups.
Wahl graduated from Princeton University in 1996 and worked at Sports Illustrated from 1996 to 2021, known primarily for his coverage of football and college basketball. He then launched his own website.
Wahl also worked for Fox Sports from 2012-19.
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