‘Heavy hearts’: 15-year-old track athlete dies after collapsing during practice
SOMERSET, Ky. (WKYT/Gray News) - A high school athlete in Kentucky died after collapsing during practice on Monday.
According to the Fayette County Coroner’s Office, 15-year-old James Phillippe collapsed Monday during track practice at Meece Middle School.
The 15-year-old was taken to the Lake Cumberland Regional Hospital and transferred to the UK Medical Center, but he ultimately died on Tuesday morning.
“It is with heavy hearts that we mourn the loss of one of our own,” Kyle Lively, superintendent of Somerset Independent Schools, said in a statement. “Our thoughts, prayers, and deepest sympathies are with the family and friends during this difficult time.”
The coroner’s office says Phillippe’s cause and manner of death are pending an autopsy.
Lively continued, “As a school community, we stand together to support each other and honor the memory of a student who will always be a part of the Somerset family.”
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