The captain of a Thai boys’ football team rescued from a cave in 2018 has died after securing a scholarship to study and play at a UK academy.
Duangpetch Promthep, 18, was found unconscious in his Leicestershire dorm on Sunday and taken to hospital, where he died on Tuesday. Reports say the teenager suffered a head injury.
The BBC reported Mr Promthep had been enrolled in the football programme since late last year.
He was one of 12 young players from the Wild Boars team trapped by rising floodwaters deep inside a cave for 18 days while exploring the cave in Chiang Rai province, Thailand.
Their story and eventual rescue by almost 100 divers gripped global attention and spawned multiple films, including 2022’s Thirteen Lives.
Mr Promthep’s emaciated but grinning face was caught in the light of a diver when the boys were finally found.
His mother informed the Wat Doi Wao temple in his home town in Chiang Rai, which posted online: “May Dom’s soul rest in peace.”
In August, team-mates rejoiced when Mr Promthep, who they call Dom, announced on Instagram that he had won a scholarship to join the Brooke House College Football Academy in Market Harborough.
He wrote at the time: “Today my dream came true. I’m going to be a football student in England.”
Other photos show the teenager playing with his friends outside lessons and visiting Tower Bridge in London.
In one picture taken shortly after accepting his scholarship, the teenager thanked his father for his support saying: “Don’t worry Dad, I’ll study hard.”
