The news cut like a knife : Lilian Thuram cannot play for Paris Saint Germain (PSG) due to a cardiaque enlargement — an increase in the size of his heart — which has sparked growing fears about his safety on the football field.
Lilian Thuram — international french footballer who has so far bagged the most selections of the french national team, determined, generous and intellectually oriented – may bring his football career to an abrupt halt due to cardiaque enlargement, an anomally which affects the size of the heart.
In his case, a heart condition may not seem incongurous as it has been a condition suffered by many in his family. His brother died on a sports field from a heart attack. His family’s heart condition that many thought had spared Lilian Thuram till now has reared its ugly head. After a routine medical check up before being signed to play with PSG, the club’s medical doctor who found out about the condition has expressed doubts over Thuram’s health and ability to deliver.
His fame is not just a product of his technique on the football pitch but also his intellectual prowess.
Fears have also been expressed in the sports arena about the safety of the intellectual international footballer whose public display of freedom of speech on political and social issues that deserve to be heard are expressed with a fearless abandon.
Thuram’s future is rather foreseeable. He has proved beyond reasonable doubt that he is capable of transcending an already exceptional career in football to express his most profound convictions. He has no fear in questioning estalished ideologies or voicing out his political differences be it against Nicolas Sarkozy, the French President, or the french government as a whole.
Even if Lilian Thuram’s medical status is unfavourable to a career in football (to play with PSG for that matter), it will come as no surprise to see him defending civic and political causes. This is, in fact, a sentiment shared by many who have not only admired his game but also believed in his political convictions and who expect him to pursue a more political career without putting his heart on the line !
