- Title: GERMANY: FOOTBALL/SOCCER - Fans mourn death of national goalkeeper Robert Enke
- Date: 12th November 2009
- Summary: BERLIN, GERMANY (NOVEMBER 11, 2009) (REUTERS) ARRIVAL OF GERMAN FOREIGN MINISTER AND VICE CHANCELLOR, GUIDO WESTERWELLE AT THE PARLIAMENT BUILDING REICHSTAG (SOUNDBITE) (German) GERMAN FOREIGN MINISTER AND VICE CHANCELLOR, GUIDO WESTERWELLE, SAYING "I am completely stunned. It's awful. Such a young man. Awful." HANOVER, GERMANY (NOVEMBER 11, 2009) (REUTERS) EXTERIOR OF HANOVER 96 STADIUM HANOVER 96 FLAGS VARIOUS OF PEOPLE SIGNING CONDOLENCE BOOK CANDLES AND FLAGS FAN LOOKING ON
- Embargoed: 27th November 2009 00:56
- Keywords:
- Location: Germany
- Country: Germany
- Topics: Sport
- Reuters ID: LVAF43HWG164QE78N2H4DS8TSU6B
- Aspect Ratio: 4:3
- Story Text: Soccer fans in German mourned the death of Germany and Hanover 96 goalkeeper Robert Enke on Wednesday (November 11) the day after he was hit by an express train in an apparent suicide near Hanover.
Local police said that the first indications pointed to a suicide, adding that Enke's body was found at a train crossing in Neustadt am Ruebenberge near Hanover.
Enke is thought to have been run over by a regional express train around 1725GMT. Police said the train had been travelling at the speed of 160-kph.
Enke, 32, won eight international caps and was in the running to play at the World Cup in South Africa next year.
The news left Germans reeling and stunned the national soccer federation (DFB).
National team coach Joachim Loew and manager Oliver Bierhoff said 'we are all shocked, we are speechless'."
Loew informed the squad of Enke's death in a hotel in Bonn ahead of their friendly match against Chile on Saturday in Cologne.
DFB president Theo Zwanziger said in a statement the federation was in mourning.
Enke, who had spells with clubs in Spain, Turkey and Portugal before signing for Bundesliga team Hanover in 2004, experienced a difficult time in recent months as he battled to secure his place in Germany's team.
He missed the last three World Cup qualifiers with what turned out to be an energy-sapping stomach virus and had just returned to action after almost two months out.
Despite not being called up for two friendlies against Chile and Ivory Coast this month, even after Bayer Leverkusen's Rene Adler pulled out with an eye infection, Loew had hinted Enke was still front-runner for the starting spot.
Enke, born in Jena in the former East Germany, also played club football for Borussia Moenchengladbach and Benfica and had a brief spell at Barcelona before stints with Fenerbahce and Tenerife.
His two-year-old daughter died of a heart ailment in 2006. The couple adopted a two-month-old girl in May.
Hundreds of fans gathered to light candles outside the Hanover 96 offices after learning of Enke's death.
It is not yet clear whether Germany's friendly against Chile on Saturday (November 14) will still go ahead. The team have a scheduled press conference at 1200GMT on Wednesday. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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