FORMER ARMENIA STRIKER MIKAELYAN IN NEED OF HEART TRANSPLANT
RIA Novosti , Russia
Oct 26 2011
Former Armenia striker Karapet Mikaelyan has been diagnosed with a
rare heart condition and is in urgent need of a transplant, he told
RIA Novosti on Wednesday.
The 42-year-old Mikaelyan, who played 20 matches for the national team
between 1996 and 1999, said doctors had diagnosed him with dilated
cardiomyopathy, a condition where the heart is unable to pump blood
efficiently.
“To be honest, I’m panicking,” Mikaelyan told RIA Novosti. “I never
thought that after a life of sport this kind of thing could happen.”
Mikaelyan said he could not afford the 30,000 euros required for the
operation and that all the clubs he had represented during his 20-year
career turned down his requests for donations. He said doctors had
not told him exactly how urgent the surgery was.
Mikaelyan was born in Moscow and spent most of his club career in
the lower leagues, but had two years at Russian Premier League club
Krylya Sovietov Samara in 1999-2000, when he scored 10 goals in
37 appearances.
He said he had received unexpected financial support from Russian
international defender Sergei Ignashevich and national team assistant
manager Aleksandr Borodyuk, but was still quite short of the amount
needed.
From: A. Papazian
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Direct link to this article: https://www.armenianclub.com/2011/10/27/sports-former-armenia-striker-mikaelyan-in-need-of-heart-transplant/