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Suspended tennis pro, 24, found dead in stairwell

Posted by ChasinDatPaper on July 7, 2009 at 5:09pm

FoxSports Reports Authorities are hoping an autopsy on Wednesday can explain the death of French tennis player Mathieu Montcourt, who was found collapsed outside his Paris apartment by his girlfriend overnight. Mathieu Montcourt reached his highest ranking ever last month by making the 2nd round in the French Open. (Lionel Bonaventure/AFP / Getty Images) The 24-year-old Montcourt's girlfriend found him lying next to his bicycle in the corridor leading to his front door, the French tennis federation's technical director Patrice Dominguez told The Associated Press on Tuesday. "I have seen the police report and for the moment there is no cause of death, and only the autopsy (Wednesday morning) will eventually find an explanation," Dominguez said by telephone. "She (Montcourt's girlfriend) was staying at his place, and he was coming home on his bike around quarter past midnight, or half (past) midnight." Montcourt's girlfriend, who was with a friend in the apartment, became alarmed when Montcourt failed to arrive. "She was with a friend in Mathieu Montcourt's apartment," Dominguez said. "They came out after a while, having left him (phone) messages, and noticed that he was lying on the floor next to his bike ... They called the (ambulance), but unfortunately he was already dead." Dominguez said the FFT will release a further statement on Wednesday afternoon if the autopsy proves conclusive. "(It is) totally surprising. He's a player we have been training for more than 10 years and who has always been irreproachable. He had a healthy lifestyle, he didn't drink (and) he's not someone who went out partying," Dominguez added. "For the moment it's inexplicable ... the autopsy tomorrow may reveal something we hadn't noticed." Dominguez had hopes that Montcourt, ranked 119, would eventually challenge for a place in the top 50. "He is a player we considered could get into he top 50 or 60 within the next two years," Dominguez said. "He was someone who was really well liked. He was someone who was always one of the best under 12s, best under 16s, best juniors. He was always a fighter, and was a player we liked to watch." Last month, Montcourt achieved his highest career ranking of 104 after reaching the second round at Roland Garros, where he lost to Radek Stepanek of the Czech Republic in four sets. Four-time French Open champion Rafael Nadal, who grew up playing regularly against Montcourt on the junior circuit, said he was shocked by the news. "This morning I woke up with one of the worst news anyone can receive," Nadal said on his Web site. "I heard about the death of our friend Mathieu Montcourt. I am still under shock for this. I can't believe it." Recalling their junior days, the 23-year-old Nadal added: "I knew Mathieu since we were kids. We competed together at all the events at an international level there is (when) you are a kid." In May, Montcourt was handed a five-week ban and fined $12,000 for betting on other matches. That ban took effect Monday. Montcourt complained during the French Open that the punishment was too harsh, saying that he never bet more than $3 at any time, and never on his own matches — a fact confirmed by the ATP which oversees the men's Tour. The Court of Arbitration for Sport said Montcourt had wagered a total of $192 on 36 tennis events in 2005. It reduced his suspension on appeal from eight weeks to five. The issue of betting in tennis drew increased attention from the sport's governing bodies after an online bookmaker voided all wagers on a 2007 match involving Nikolay Davydenko. About $7 million was bet — 10 times the usual amount for a similar-level match — and most of the money backed Davydenko's lower-ranked opponent. Davydenko was cleared in September after a yearlong investigation
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