Eya Guezguez passed away after an accident on Sunday
© Instagram @eya_guezguez
Tunisian Olympic sailor Eya Guezguez, who was her country’s youngest athlete at Tokyo 2020, has died after a training accident caused her to drown on Sunday.
Guezguez and her twin sister Sarra, who is the elder of the pair by two minutes, finished 21st in their 49er FX event in the Japanese capital last summer.
While training in waters off Tunisia’s capital Tunis at the weekend, the 17-year-old twins’ dinghy capsized according to Tunisian Olympic Committee (CNOT) president Mehrez Boussayan.
While the girls’ coach first managed to help Sarra, he located Eya and performed CPR on the youngster to no avail.
Then taken to hospital, Eya was pronounced dead after drowning with some local reports suggesting that the accident was caused by strong winds and bad weather.
CNOT described death of Guezguez, who was just 16 in Tokyo last summer, as “a tragedy” as the Tunisian Minister of Sports and Youth also paid tribute to her and sent condolences to the family.
© Instagram @eya_guezguez
International Olympic Committee (IOC) president Thomas Bach said he was “shocked by the news of sailor Eya Guezguez’s death” and described her as an “inspiring talent and role model for her athletes’ generation”.
“Eya Guezguez’s participation at Tokyo 2020 alongside her twin sister Sarra will continue to motivate girls everywhere. Our thoughts are with her family, friends and the Olympic community in Tunisia,” Bach added.
In Tunisia, the incident has caused anger among the public who have questioned the quality of management and training equipment.
“May God have mercy on the deceased, grant her eternal rest in paradise, and grant her family and relatives and the entire sports family a beautiful patience and solace,” the CNOT remarked in a statement, with an investigation launched into the incident that occurred just a few hours before Muslims were set to break fasting on Ramadan’s ninth day.
