Former IOC chief Juan Antonio Samaranch dies at 89
Former International Olympic Committee president Juan Antonio Samaranch died Wednesday at the age of 89 at a Barcelona hospital from a cardiorespiratory arrest, Reuters reported.
Samaranch passed away at 1:25 pm (1125 GMT) at the Quiron Hospital where he was admitted on Sunday after experiencing heart trouble. The Spaniard was widely regarded as the most powerful man in sport when he headed the IOC from 1980 to 2001, after which the current IOC president Jacques Rogge took over.
Even in retirement Samaranch remained active in Olympic circles and tried to help Madrid secure the 2012 and 2016 Games. Madrid finished third behind London, the winner, and Paris in the vote for the 2012 Olympics, and second to Rio de Janeiro for 2016.
Samaranch first had health problems in 2001 when he was hospitalized for 11 days in Switzerland with “extreme fatigue”. He has received regular dialysis treatment for kidney trouble. In 2007, Samaranch spent two days in a hospital in Madrid after a dizzy spell.