19-year-old taekwondo champion dead after suffering cardiac arrest in sleep

Taekwondo champion Isabelle Sava died “completely unexpectedly in her sleep after suffering a cardiac arrest,” according to her family. She was 19.

“It is with an incredibly heavy heart that I am creating this fundraiser on behalf of my dear friends, Laura and Ovi Sava, who are facing every parent’s worst nightmare – the sudden and unimaginable loss of their beautiful and only daughter, Isabelle, at just 19 years old,” the description for Sava’s GoFundMe page said.

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Emergency services “fought desperately to resuscitate her” but “Isabelle could not be saved,” the page added.

Sava was preparing to begin her second year studying LLB law at Queen Mary University of London and “was working towards her dream of becoming a commercial lawyer,” according to the GoFundMe page.

The 19-year-old spent more than a decade dedicated to taekwondo, according to the description.

“Another enormous part of Isabelle’s life was Taekwondo, a sport to which she dedicated more than 10 years of her life,” the page said. “Through years of training, discipline, perseverance and determination, Isabelle achieved the outstanding level of second-degree black belt.”

In 2022, Sava competed at the World Taekwondo Championships in the Netherlands and won a silver medal in sparring.

The money raised will “contribute towards Isabelle’s funeral and memorial expenses, as well as other unexpected costs the family is facing following her sudden passing,” according to the fundraising page.

The GoFundMe post had raised more than 13,900 British pounds of its 16,000-pound goal from more than 330 donations as of Monday morning.

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Sava’s taekwondo academy, Trenic TKD, shared a statement on Instagram, writing, “It is with deep sadness and heavy hearts that we share the devastating news of the passing of Isabelle Sava.”

“Isabelle began her Taekwon-Do journey with Trenic TKD at our Yeading Academy in 2015. Through sheer dedication, talent, and passion, she quickly advanced through the ranks, achieving her 1st Degree Black Belt in 2019 and her 2nd Degree in 2021,” the academy added.

“Already an accomplished regional and national champion, Isabelle set her sights on representing Team UK at the ITF World Championships. In her very first international outing, she proved her extraordinary skill and spirit, battling through tough opponents to secure a silver medal in sparring.

“Beyond her remarkable achievements on the mats, Isabelle was a pleasure to teach, train alongside, and know. She will be sorely missed by everyone who had the privilege of meeting her across the Taekwon-Do community. Our deepest thoughts, love, and prayers are with her family and friends during this heart-breaking time.”

Cardiac arrest is a life-threatening medical emergency where the heart suddenly stops beating and fails to pump blood to the brain and other vital organs, according to the Cleveland Clinic.

The Heart and Stroke Foundation of Canada says 60,000 cardiac arrests occur outside of a hospital setting each year in Canada, and one in 10 survives an out-of-hospital cardiac arrest.

Signs of a cardiac arrest include sudden collapse, loss of consciousness, unresponsiveness to touch or sound, and not breathing or not breathing normally, according to the organization.