A 16-year-old runner from Texas collapsed and died shortly after crossing the finishing line where he beat his personal record at a cross country meet.
Angel Hernandez, a Chisholm Trail High School student, finished the five-kilometer run at a district track event in Haltom City, Tarrant County.
But the Texas runner suddenly collapsed after crossing the finishing line before being rushed to Medical City Alliance, but he was pronounced dead.
Friends and family are baffled about what caused his death, which the Tarrant County Medical Examiner is currently investigating.
The Daily Mail reported:
He quickly collapsed after crossing the finishing line, and his friends rushed him over to a water station, where he fell again.
Tributes poured in for Hernandez following his tragic death.
“It was tragic, it was terrible news,” his previous track coach Brent Brevard told KHOU.
“He’s such a great kid, a likable kid, a good student, and it was awful news.”
“He was the kind of student-athlete you wanted.”
“He worked hard and cared about the teammates. But then he also acted right in school and took care of his grades.”
A funeral was held for the teenager on Friday, and his family was given the teen’s varsity letter jacket to honor his legacy.
“A lot of people attended [the funeral], a lot of his teammates made it, and they encouraged everyone to wear [the school color] purple,” Brevard added.
There was a moment of silence held for Hernandez at the Chisholm Trail High School homecoming game hosted later that night.
The teenager was also a student at the Texas School of Karate, which shut for the week following his death as a mark of respect.
“Every one of us cried, every one of us has comforted each other,’ coach Ashley Wood said.
‘It’s really hard. We’ll never get over it. We’ll never forget him. He’s going to be missed here, but he’s going to be loved always.”
She said Hernandez lived up to his angel name and added: “He made you love him with his personality.”
There was a moment of silence held for Hernandez at the Chisholm Trail High School homecoming game hosted after his funeral
“He had an infectious smile. The moment of silence, it helps us know that he was loved by everyone.”
Wood has been comforting his friends at karate who are grieving his death. She said he showed no signs of illness while training before the incident.
The karate coach set up a GoFundMe page to help Hernandez’s family with funeral costs, and $12,000 has been raised so far.
“It’s comforting to know that his reach went even far beyond what we knew, even outside of martial arts and even outside of him running cross country,” she said.
“It goes far beyond that. Everybody is feeling the effects of Angel. Angel is that kid. He touched everyone he came in contact with. You couldn’t help but love him.”
Hernandez is survived by his parents Antonio and Elsie Hernandez, and younger brother Mark.
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