SEA Games sepak takraw athlete in ICU after accident

SINGAPORE – A SEA Games athlete was in intensive care on Monday after undergoing two operations following a motorbike crash which also killed his brother, officials said on Monday.

Muhammad Azreen, a sepak takraw player for Singapore, had emergency surgery followed by another operation on Monday after the accident early Sunday.

“He had a second surgery today and is now resting in the surgical intensive care unit,” said a statement from Singapore’s chefs de mission Tan Eng Liang and Nicholas Fang.

“He is being monitored closely by his specialists for his progress and recovery.”

Singapore’s team went down 3-0 in their match against Indonesia on Monday as the traumatized players absorbed news of Azreen’s accident.

The 25-year-old’s younger brother, who was 21 and was riding pillion, was fatally injured in the crash on one of Singapore’s highways.

Sepak takraw is a volleyball-style game played with the feet and a rattan ball, and is a staple of the 11-nation Southeast Asian Games, which also features Olympic sports.

The accident added to the sombre mood in Singapore after the death of at least eight citizens, mostly schoolchildren, in Friday’s earthquake on Mount Kinabalu in Malaysia.

SEA Games venues observed a minute’s silence and flags flew at half-mast on what was declared a day of national remembrance. – Rappler.com