Casillas award

SPAIN'S World Cup 2010 winning captain Iker Casillas has been awarded a Gold Medal for services to cardiovascular health at the annual congress of the European Heart Rhythm Association (EHRA) in Barcelona.

The ex-keeper, 41, ended his playing career in 2020 after almost a year on the sidelines following a heart attack he suffered during a training session with his Porto teammates. He now works at raising the awareness of maintaining a healthy heart and spotting the signs of a heart attack.

to more centres.”

The procedure had only previously been used in lung cancer operations and was used on 65-year-old Xavier who needed a lung transplant after suffering from pulmonary fibrosis since 2007.

Pros

“I weighed up the pros and cons,” he told reporters. “I totally trusted the robot machines because they reduce human error,” added Xavier.

He backed up Albert Jauregui's analysis by saying that he woke up after February’s operation and felt no pain whatsoever.

“When the doctor told me I was having a heart attack, I couldn’t believe it. I do sports, live a healthy lifestyle, and was feeling good and strong, ” said Casillas.