Two young adults collapsed and died shortly after crossing the finish lines of half marathons in Oregon this month — apparently from unexplained cardiac arrest.
Sunday morning, steps after completing the Eugene Half Marathon, 23-year-old Mateo Cruz collapsed on the track of Hayward Field on the University of Oregon campus. Race organizers said he received “immediate medical attention” from medics on an event team and from Eugene Springfield Fire.
Medics gave Cruz chest compressions, and he was taken to a nearby hospital but didn’t survive. Though his family couldn’t be reached for comment by The Oregonian/OregonLive, The Register-Guard in Eugene quoted his aunt as saying he had no known heart conditions. She said he also loved running and was looking forward to training for a marathon next…