Grant Wahl’s wife: Autopsy shows ‘nothing nefarious about his death’ at World Cup
Renowned soccer writer and Kansas City native Grant Wahl, who died last week while covering the World Cup in Qatar, had an ascending aortic aneurysm, his wife said Wednesday.
Wahl’s wife, Dr. Celine Gounder, shared the results of an autopsy in a blog post on her husband’s Substack.
“An autopsy was performed by the New York City Medical Examiner’s Office,” Gounder wrote. “Grant died from the rupture of a slowly growing, undetected ascending aortic aneurysm with hemopericardium. The chest pressure he experienced shortly before his death may have represented the initial symptoms. No amount of CPR or shocks would have saved him. His death was unrelated to COVID. His death was unrelated to vaccination status. There was nothing nefarious about his death.”
Wahl, a 49-year-old graduate of Shawnee Mission East High, collapsed while covering the Argentina-Netherlands game on Friday in Lusail, Qatar. There had been some speculation on social media that Wahl was killed for supporting the LGBTQ+ community or as a result of being vaccinated against COVID.
The John Hopkins Medicine website said an ascending aortic aneurysm “is an abnormal bulging and weakening in your aorta at the point before the curve. If an aortic aneurysm ruptures, it can cause life-threatening bleeding. An aneurysm at risk for rupture needs surgical repair.”
The Cleveland Clinic noted an ascending aortic aneurysms are diagnosed in about one out of 10,000 people each year and are difficult to diagnose.
Wahl, the former Sports Illustrated writer, said he’d been sick during the tournament and had also felt tightness in his chest.
Gounder told the New York Times that Wahl “probably died instantly and did not feel pain.”
“I really do feel some relief in knowing what it was,” she said.
Gounder said details of a memorial service will be shared in the near future.
This story was originally published December 14, 2022 at 9:02 AM.
