Investigation and inquest
On 29th March 2017, Alison Mutch OBE, Senior Coroner for Manchester South opened an inquest into the death of Charlie Benjamin Craig, who was aged 15 when his death was confirmed at Stepping Hill Hospital, Stockport on 21st January 2017. The investigation concluded at the end of the inquest which I heard on 13th and 14th February 2018.
The conclusion of the inquest was that Master Craig died as a consequence of damage to his heart resulting from a number of myocardial infarctions. It is likely that these myocardial infarctions occurred as a result of an abnormal physiological response to adrenaline and noradrenaline produced by the body during intense exercise. At the end of the inquest, I recorded a narrative conclusion to this effect.
Circumstances of the death
Charlie Craig was an elite cyclist, and a member of the Apprenticeship stage of British Cycling's World Class Programme. Master Craig appeared to be generally in excellent health, and in particular did not at any stage report any signs or symptoms which would ordinarily be suggestive of any problems with his heart.
Master Craig was found unresponsive in his bed on the morning of 21st January 2017, having last been seen by his family, apparently fit and well, the previous evening.
A post mortem examination (part of which included examination of Master Craig's heart by a specialist cardiac pathologist) concluded that Charlie Craig died as a result of:
1a) Idiopathic myocardial infarction;
II) Gastrointestinal bleeding.
Coroner’s concerns
It was confirmed during the inquest that British Cycling does not currently undertake any health assessments or medical screening prior to accepting young riders onto the Apprenticeship stage of the World Class Programme.
The evidence before the court was that this approach differs from that of some other UK sporting bodies running comparable programmes for young athletes, who undertake medical screening as a matter of routine.
A consultant cardiologist gave evidence in the course of the inquest to the effect that medical screening can play an important role in identifying cardiac abnormalities in asymptomatic young people.