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Athletics champion Herms death ruled from natural causes

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Athletics champion Herms death ruled from natural causes
Photo: DPA

German athletics champion Rene Herms died of heart failure due to a viral infection, according to autopsy results released on Friday.

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“Rene Herms died of natural causes,” public prosecutors in Dresden said in a statement. “The coroner found the death resulted from infected heart musculature from a virus. This infection is what caused the sudden heart failure.”

Herms was German 800 metre champion from 2001 until 2006 and again from 2002 until 2007 and in 2004 reached the semi-finals at the Olympic Games.

The 26-year-old was found dead in his flat in the eastern state of Saxony earlier this month. Police quickly ruled out the possibility of foul play, but speculation continued over the past few weeks that Herms died from using some performance enhancing substances.

But the authorities on Friday said they considered the case now closed.

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