Many-time national champion Kemoy Campbell has announced his retirement from track and field on medical grounds.
Campbell, who made the announcement on his Instagram account, has been out of action since his heart stopped while competing at the Millrose Games in New York in February.
The 28 year old was subsequently put into a medically induced coma for 48 hours and spent the next few weeks in hospital where he underwent a series of tests after being revived.
With tests failing to reveal anything conclusive why his heart had stopped, an implantable cardioverter defibrillator was put inside his chest by doctors who ordered him to take a few months off before he could ever think about running again.
Campbell in his post on Instagram says “It’s with a heavy heart, or half of one rather. I must say goodbye to the sport. I will no longer be competing. I have given my all to this sport. It has taken me to places I have never dreamt of going.
It gave a shy boy from a rural area in Jamaica the opportunity to prove himself to the world. I believe I have done my part. I’ve represented myself, my family, my country proudly”.
Campbell who first came to prominence while representing Bellefield High at the ISSA Boys and Girls Athletics Championships holds the national record in the 3000m, 5000m and 10,000 metre events respectively.