Athlete dies during Russian championships

Moscow: Russian athlete Yegor Leontiev died during the Russian national triathlon championships in Nizhny Novgorod at the weekend, local media reported Monday.

The RIA-Novosti agency said the 26-year-old had collapsed during the 21km run after having completed the 1.9km swim and 90km cycling sections of the event. A medical emergency crew struggled for more than an hour to try to keep Leontiev alive but all of their efforts were in vain, said RIA-Novosti. Investigating authorities in Nizhny Novgorod have ordered an inquest into Leontiev`s death.