Terrible accident on family vacation: Former national team captain died

The former captain of the Lithuanian national ice hockey team, Mindaugas Kieras, 45, has died. This is reported by the Lithuanian public broadcaster LRT.

According to LRT, Kieras passed away in an accident during a family vacation on Sunday.

Kieras’ friend and former teammate Sarunas Kuliesius says that Kieras died after jumping off a bridge into a river.

– His wife told me that he jumped from the bridge into the water. When he was pulled from the river and identified, he had significant injuries to his head and neck, Kuliesius said to Lithuanian media.

– Apparently, there was something in the river at the point where he hit after falling. He was with his family, and then this happened, Kuliesius continued.

Kieras won the fourth-tier World Championships twice and the third-tier World Championships once during his career. The defender played in the Lithuanian top league and the British top league.

After his career, Kieras served as the head coach of the Lithuanian club Hockey Punks and as the head coach of the Lithuanian national team.