Norwegian Swimming Champion Dies

Norwegian swimming champion Alexander Dale Oen aged 26 died suddenly after training in Flagstaff, Arizona (US). Emergency services arrived within minutes but couldn't succeed in reviving him from the cardiac arrest. Friends said he had appeared healthy earlier.

Doctors at the Flagstaff Medical Center declared the world champion swimmer dead at 21:00 local time on Monday after all efforts to resuscitate him failed.Per Rune Eknes told national broadcaster NRK that it was the blackest day in the history of Norwegian swimming.

Norway's Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg expressed his sorrow at the death of the swimmer. "Alexander Dale Oen was a great athlete for a small country. My thoughts go to his family and friends" 

Dale Oen won gold in the 100m breaststroke at the World Championships in Shanghai in July 2011.Dale Oen's last tweet on Monday, as he was coming to the end of training in the US, said: "2 days left of our camp up here in Flagstaff, then it's back to the most beautiful city in Norway #Bergen".