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Saturday, July 21, 2012

Bolton's Muamba to carry Olympic torch

LONDON (Reuters) - Bolton Wanderers player Fabrice Muamba, who almost died after suffering cardiac arrest in an FA Cup tie this year, will carry the Olympic torch on Saturday, organisers said.

Muamba, who moved to the London borough of Waltham Forest from the Democratic Republic of Congo when he was 11, will carry the flame as the torch relay reaches the capital's suburbs.

"As an ex-Waltham Forest schoolboy Fabrice Muamba has strong ties with the borough and has seen the area transform in the run up to the Olympic Games," Chris Robbins, the leader of Waltham Forest council, said in a statement.

"His drive, courage and determination to return to top-flight football have been remarkable and he has proved to be a great role model to Waltham Forest's young people."

Muamba needed life-saving treatment after his heart stopped when he collapsed on the pitch at Tottenham Hotspur's White Hart Lane ground on March 17.

The 24-year-old, whose heart stopped for 78 minutes, spent four weeks in hospital where he made a remarkable recovery.

(Reporting by Martyn Herman, editing by Pritha Sarkar)

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