Tributes have been paid to a talented young shinty player who died from suspected heart failure just hours before a match.
Calum Mackintosh, 20, was due to receive a Young Player of the Year Award at an event next month.
But Kingussie Camanachd Club announced yesterday that he had suffered a ‘catastrophic cardiac event’ on Saturday, shortly before a university match between Edinburgh and Aberdeen.
His death was one of two to hit the Highland community at the weekend, with the club also paying tribute to a 17-year-old boy from nearby Newtonmore, who died on Friday.
The club said it was the ‘darkest of weekends for all our communities in Badenoch and Strathspey’.
Calum Mackintosh studied law and was due to receive the Young Player of the Year award
Calum suffered a ‘catastrophic cardiac event’ shortly before a university match between Edinburgh and Aberdeen
A spokesman added: ‘The passing of two young people in totally separate and unrelated events has shaken us all to the core and left us unable to comprehend.’
Mr Mackintosh was studying law at Napier University in Edinburgh, and had spent Friday with two teammates, going to the gym and watching rugby before getting up early for the match the next day.
The club said this was typical of Mr Mackintosh ‘living life at full throttle but always with that big beautiful smile on his face’. It added: ‘When the Kingussie coaches met a few weeks ago to decide on the player awards for this season, the Young Player of the Year award was no contest – Cal Mac got every vote and was due to receive it a week on Saturday.’
Police Scotland said local officers were also made aware of the death of the teenager on Friday. A spokesman said: ‘Inquiries are ongoing to establish the full circumstances, however, the death is not being treated as suspicious and a report will be submitted to the procurator fiscal.’
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