A Rhondda man has suffered a stroke while at his local training club, days after securing silver medals at a Brazillian Jiu-Jitsu competition in Rome. His coach said his team took him to the Royal Glamorgan Hospital straight away, after being told an ambulance would take seven hours to reach him.
Gavin ‘ Iggy ‘ Thomas, 40, from Clydach Vale, fell ill while he training at G7 BJJ Academy on Monday, November 14. Around 7.50pm, his training partner noticed that he didn't look very well - his coach, also called Gavin Thomas, aged 43, said that he "all of a sudden looked drunk" and his mouth had dropped.
He added: "We got him to a room and the ambulance said it would take them seven hours to get here and the hospital was down the road, so we carried him down the stairs, got him in the car and just got him down there as quick as possible." At the hospital, Gavin, known as Iggy, faced further complications and had to undergo surgery, but was currently stable according to his coach. You can get more Rhondda news and other story updates straight to your inbox by subscribing to our newsletters here.
