Indian footballer dies in tragic magic incident in Mizoram Premier League

The standing backflip is  a type of advanced, backward somersault. The body rolls/flips end-over-end, making a complete 360 degree revolution and landing back on the feet, without contacting the floor with hands, head or shoulders, requiring practice and care to execute.  Bethlehem Vengthlang FC started the campaign better than most expected and after four rounds they have six points and third on the table. On October 14, they faced Chanmari West FC and ________ scored his first goal in the league at 62 minutes which was also the equalizer. He was delighted to score an important goal …… I for sure would not have read this but for the incident, perhaps most of others too …..

A leading newspaper wrote – he will not score a goal again – and that had been decided by himself (meaning his chosen retirement). Miroslav Josef Klose  is a famous footballer from Germany  who plays as a striker for Lazio in the Italian Serie A. Klose is best known for his performances with the German national team, for which he is the all-time top scorer with 71 goals. He has excelled at the FIFA World Cup, where he is the overall top scorer in its history with 16 goals. He was part of the 2014 World Cup winning German squad too.  Klose scored five goals in his debut World Cup in 2002 and won the Golden Boot at the 2006 World Cup in Germany by again scoring five times.  He retired recently in Aug 2014.

Santosh Trophy is the annual Indian football tournament which is contested by states and government institutions. The first winners were Bengal, who also lead the all-time winners list with 31 titles till date. The tournament first began in 1941, and was the premier football competition in the country before the National Football League started in the year 1996. The trophy as named after the late Maharaja Sir Manmatha Nath Roy Chowdhary of Santosh, which is now in Bangladesh, who had been the President of the Indian Football Association, the football organisation of Bengal and the donators of the trophy. A bunch of unheralded diminutive footballers took the Santosh Trophy by storm and maintained their rich brand of fast-paced attacking football in the Final to deservingly win their maiden Nationals crown sweeping aside Railways 3-0 in the Title clash of the 68th National Championships for the Santosh Trophy held in March 2014.

In line with the super IPL and Indian Kabbadi league, Hockey league, Badminton league … there is Indian Super league in which Virat Kohli and MS Dhoni too own teams.  The 2014 ISL Inaugural Domestic Draft was the first ever draft from the Indian Super League, the new franchise domestic football league in India. ~ and alongside is happening the “Mizoram Premier League” -  the highest state-level association football league in Mizoram, India.

It was in this - Bethlehem Vengthlang FC started the campaign better than most expected and after four rounds they have six points and third on the table. On October 14, they faced Chanmari West FC and Peter Biaksangzuala scored his first goal in the league at 62 minutes which was also the equalizer. He was delighted to score an important goal and celebrated his goal by flipping but unfortunately made an awkward land. He was rushed to Aizawl Civil Hospital ~ and the sad news is that he died of spinal injuries sustained in that somersault goal celebration.

Biaksangzuala spent five days in hospital before passing away on Sunday; the  23-year-old midfielder scored a 62nd-minute equaliser against Chanmari West FC in Tuesday's league encounter and celebrated acrobatically - in a manner similar to record World Cup goalscorer Miroslav Klose. Unfortunately, Biaksangzuala mistimed his landing and his head took the brunt of the fall. The FB page of Mizoram football (photo credit to FB of Mizoram premier league) states that his eyes were donated.  In memory of the midfielder, Bethlehem Vengthlang FC have retired his shirt No 21 with the Mizoram Football Association.  The statement reads “'It has been a sad day for Mizoram football and the demise of the footballer shook his team-mates, footballers and fans alike all over Mizoram.

With regards – S. Sampathkumar

20^th Oct 2014.