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1 year ago
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Swedish trail runner Emilia Brangefalt has passed away at the age of 21 after taking her own life.
The talented long-distance athlete won bronze in 2022's Trail World Championships 40km race in Chiang Mai, and this year came fifth in a world championship race in Innsbruck but was forced to take an extended break from the sport after being diagnosed with an extremely high heart rate.
In a post shared to her Instagram account on November 4, Brangefalt detailed the difficulties she had been suffering both physically and mentally after being forced to take time away from the sport.
'Just taking a walk is painful right now,' Brangefalt wrote. 'Have been to the hospital and visit the medical over 20 times but every single blood test/ ekg/ cycle test is good. Still my body is super stressed although I have given it so much love the past months’.
‘Maybe it was to much for a 21 year old girl to run Transvulcania 48k and WMTRC 45k with less then one month in between. I am super sad because running and training means so much’, the athlete added.
Swedish trail runner Emilia Brangefalt has died after taking her own life earlier in November
At the start of the month, Brangefalt revealed that she had been forced to give up the sport due to her high heart rate
‘But now, just living a normal life is difficult. I have spent more hours in bed than on my feet this past month. Maybe one day I will be back. Or I won’t. I hope my body can recover from this.'
On Wednesday evening, the Swedish Athletics Federation confirmed that Brangefalt had died by suicide earlier this month.
Their statement read: ‘During her last months, Emilia felt very bad, both physically and mentally. She had good support from those closest to her, but on November 13, she ended her life’.
The statement also included comments from Kasja Bergqvist, the captain of the SAF, who wrote that Brangefalt's death was 'so deeply tragic' that she had 'a hard time finding words'.
'I didn’t know Emilia personally but have understood that she was a very nice person, a forward-thinking, lovely, talented girl with her whole life ahead of her,' she added.
Brangefalt's running association Vasteras FK also shared a statement on its website, saying that they are all 'in mourning'.
The athlete shared her disappointment with her Instagram followers and said that she was hopeful of recovery
The Swedish Athletic Federation paid tribute to Brangefalt's life on Wednesday, as did her club
The club plans to honour Brangefalt's life at their annual gala on Friday.
In a tribute to his sister on Instagram, Brangefalt's brother Adam revealed that she had sought psychiatric support on November 12, but was unable to received treatment due to 'a lack of staff'.
Adam paid tribute to his sister's sporting abilities as well as her passion, adding: 'Your love for your sport and being able to move, was indescribable. A love for sports that we have always shared. All the hundreds of kilometers we skied, all the jumps we made and all the nice memories we created through movement.
'But love is difficult. When your love for what you loved most painfully rips from you and your body. You couldn't take it anymore.'
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