Young and fit tradie trainee who collapsed during an Oztag game was cleared at last health check before he died suddenly
- Caleb Pace died after collapsing during a soccer game
- He was only 20 years old, fit and led a physically active life.
An electrician’s apprentice who died three days after collapsing during an Oztag game went for regular checkups as his family had a history of heart problems.
Caleb Pace, 20, whose heart went into fibrillation and stopped breathing while playing the game at a Gold Coast sports ground, may have had a hereditary heart condition.
Spectators performed CPR on Mr Pace on the pitch and rushed him to Gold Coast University Hospital where he was placed in an induced coma.
He died on June 23. The exact cause of death of Mr. Pace is still unknown.
Caleb Pace, 20, whose heart went into fibrillation and stopped breathing on a Gold Coast sports field, may have had a hereditary heart condition. He died on June 23. In the photo (from the left), Caleb Pace
According to a family GoFundMe page, Michelle Ebens was the youngest person in Australia to have a defibrillator that restarts her heart when she needs it.
His sudden passing seemed to make little sense: in addition to being young, he was fit and living a busy and active life, competing in mixed martial arts, Oztag, and holding down a physically demanding job.
Mr. Pace took care of his health and had regular heart checkups after his mother, Michelle Ebens, suffered from problems all her life.
At a young age, a small defibrillator was implanted in his chest.
According to a family GoFundMe page, Ms Ebens was the youngest person in Australia to have a defibrillator that restarts her heart when she needs it.
Mr Pace’s uncle, Steve Clarke, said Mr Pace and his younger brother, Cy, had regular heart checks because of their mother’s heart problems.
But “nothing ever showed up on the radar,” Clarke said.
It is understood that Ms Eben’s family and friends are now concerned about her, about her own health, but also because she is said to be “heartbroken” by the death of her son.
He expressed his heartbreak over the loss of his son in a Facebook post, saying his heart was “broken” and he was in “a lot of pain.”
“My baby is gone and life will never be the same again,” she wrote.
He GoFundMe The page was created by family friend Jessica Trevor to support her devastated mother Michelle, father Tony and 19-year-old brother Cy.
“Everyone who has had the privilege of meeting and knowing you is praying,” Ms. Trevor wrote on the page.
Tributes have flooded social networks in the wake of the tragedy.
Her parents and brother said she was an “incredibly generous, generous, caring, kind, loving soul with a heart of pure gold.”
It is understood that Ms Eben’s family and friends are now concerned about her, about her own health, but also because she is said to be “heartbroken” by the death of her son.
Funds raised through the GoFundMe page would go towards financially supporting Caleb’s family and allowing them to grieve in peace.
The goal of the page is to raise $20,000 to help find and finance Ms. Eben and her son Cy a home in Queensland and give the family time to grieve.
She had previously lived away from her children, being separated from them for 18 months due to the Queensland rent crisis.
She struggled to find rental property for herself and her two children.
