Bernardo Ribeiro 1989 -2016 #RIP

Former Newcastle Jets player Bernardo Ribeiro has died, aged 26, after falling ill during a match in Brazil.

The attacking midfielder is the second footballer in two days to die from suspected heart problems.

On Friday, Dinamo Bucharest’s Patrick Ekeng died in hospital after collapsing on the pitch during a Romanian league match against Viitorul Constanta.

Brazilian Ribeiro was playing for Friburguense in his homeland on Saturday when he took ill and had to be replaced, O Globo reported.

He was taken to hospital but later suffered a suspected fatal heart attack, according to reports. There has been no official confirmation of his cause of death.

Ribeiro began his professional career with Skënderbeu in Albania, having come through the youth ranks with Flamengo in Brazil and, briefly, Catania in Italy.

He signed for the Jets in August 2012 and made six appearances for the A-League club before heading to Finland with IFK Mariehamn and then back to Brazil with Inter de Lages last year.

Former Jets team-mates took to social media to express their condolences.

“I’m so deeply saddened that you’re no longer with us. My prayers go out to your family and friends. RIP my brother,” Jets goalkeeper Mark Birighitti said on Instagram.

Mariehamn said on their Facebook page: “We have received sad news today. Bernardo Ribeiro, who played for IFK during 2013 and 2014, has suddenly deceased after a game in Brasil with his club Friburguense.

“Our thoughts are with his wife Katie and his relatives. Thanks for everything and rest in peace Bernardo.”

Ribeiro married Katie Ayscough, from Maitland, earlier this year.

“I can’t believe, I don’t want to believe but the realness cannot be ignored,” she said in a Facebook post. “Tonight heaven received the most beautiful angel. My best friend, my husband, my everything.”

#RIP

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Antoine Demoitie 1990 - 2016

Belgian cyclist Antoine Demoitié has died in hospital after being hit by a motorbike after a fall during the Gent-Wevelgem cycling classic on Sunday. Several riders had fallen in the crash as the race moved through Sainte-Marie-Cappel in northern France.

“The rider died. An inquiry is under way to determine the circumstances,” Frederic Evrard, spokesman for the Nord-Pas-de-Calais regional gendarmerie in France, told Agence France Presse.

The 25-year-old Wanty-Gobert rider was taken to the University Hospital of Lille after the accident during a section of the race in Northern France but died some time later.

Team Wanty-Gobert had said on Twitter late on Sunday that their rider was in a very serious condition and that his wife and family were at his side, but had no further updates.

The 243-kilometre event was won by the world champion Peter Sagan, the Tinkoff rider beating his breakaway companions after taking the wheel of the Russian Vyacheslav Kuznetsov, who launched the final sprint but finished third.

Lotto Soudal rider Jens Debusschere was also taken to hospital after crashing during the notoriously gruelling race, with his team confirming he suffered a “bruised muscle, a bruised junction between collar bone and shoulder blade, a concussion and abrasions”.

#RIP 

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Kerr Explains Warriors Absence

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The Golden State Warriors coach, Steve Kerr, has clarified the reasons behind his leave of absence, explaining he stepped away from his duties due to complications from back surgery.

Kerr, who coached the Warriors to the championship last season, had an operation on his back in July. “I had a spinal fluid leak during the first surgery,” he told reporters on Sunday. “It’s very rare, it does happen occasionally, but it happens when there’s an accidental nick of the dura that surrounds the spinal cord. But I lost spinal fluid, took about a month to figure out what was going on, a lot of headaches, some other symptoms.”

Kerr had further surgery to address the problem at the start of September, which has caused his absence from the team. Kerr would not say when he would return to his duties on a full-time basis. “It’s a matter of your body sort of recalibrating,” he said. “Unfortunately, it’s not like a sprained ankle, one to two weeks. There’s no telling. It’s a little bit open-ended, but everyone’s confident I’m going to be fine. That’s where I am. I’m not going to be put a timetable on when I’m going to come back.”

The announcement appears to be an effort to explain to fans why Kerr has not been coaching the Warriors in the lead-up to the new season, which starts later this month. “I wanted to just tell you guys what I’m going through, what’s happened. Because I think there’s kind of a grey area, people wondering what’s going on,” he said.

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Messi Faces Tax Fraud Charges

Lionel Messi and his father should stand trial on tax fraud charges, a court in Spain has ruled.

The judge in charge of the case rejected the request by prosecutors to drop the charges against the striker.

Messi and his father Jorge are accused of defrauding Spain of more than €4m (£3.1m; $5m). They deny any wrongdoing.

Lawyers acting on behalf of the tax authorities demanded 22-month jail sentences for both defendants.

Prosecutors allege that Jorge avoided paying tax on his son's earnings by using offshore companies in Belize and Uruguay in 2007-09.

Messi's lawyers had argued that the player had "never devoted a minute of his life to reading, studying or analysing" the contracts, El Pais newspaper reportedearlier.

'Corrective payment'

"There are rational signs that the criminality was committed by both accused parties," wrote the judge in a court filing, according to the AFP news agency.

No date has been set for the trial of the 28-year-old footballer - the four-time World Player of the Year and one of the richest athletes in the world.

In June, the high court in Barcelona ruled that Messi should not be granted immunity for not knowing what was happening with his finances, which were being managed in part by his father.

The income related to Messi's image rights, including contracts with Banco Sabadell, Danone, Adidas, Pepsi-Cola, Procter and Gamble, and the Kuwait Food Company.

Messi and his father made a voluntary €5m "corrective payment" - equal to the alleged unpaid tax plus interest - in August 2013.

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