Kelly Catlin

Kelly Catlin - who was born on November 3rd, 1995, in St. Paul, Minnesota, U.S.A. - was an American professional racing cyclist.  She was one of triplets born to Mark Catlin, a medical pathologist, and his wife Carolyn; her siblings were a brother, Colin, and a sister, Christine.  As children, the triplets had a strict upbringing, with their parents forbidding them watching television, and only allowing them to watch movies whilst running on a treadmill.  When they were eight, they would only receive their $20-a-month allowance if they exercised for thirty minutes a day, five times a week.  At high school, Catlin was a socially-awkward but driven athlete and student.  She earned a perfect score on her S.A.T. and was a first-chair violinist in her school orchestra, as well as being a competitive badminton player, and excelling at skiing, fencing, and shooting.  During her teens, Catlin became more withdrawn, preferring to study and train alone, rather than socialise with her peers.  Whilst still in 11th Grade, she began taking classes at the University of Minnesota, eventually earning two degrees there in mathematics and Chinese.  At seventeen, she took up cycling, and very quickly excelled at the sport.  She joined the Rally UHC Cycling team, winning Gold in the Team Pursuit at the 2016 UCI Track World Championship, and then finished second in the Team Pursuit at the Rio de Janeiro Olympics that same year.  In both 2017 and 2018, Catlin took first place in the Team Pursuit and third in the Individual Pursuit at the UCI World Championship.  In the Autumn of 2018, she matriculated at Stanford University, studying for a graduate degree in computational and mathematical engineering.  However, in October of that year, Catlin crashed and broke her arm, with another crash leading to a concussion.  She subsequently complained of headaches, dizziness, nausea, and light-sensitivity.  On January 31st, 2019, Catlin locked herself into her room with two helium canisters and attempted to commit suicide by inhaling the gas.  She passed out, but awoke several hours later, after which she was rushed to Stanford Hospital, where she was held for seven days.  After being released to her Stanford apartment, Catlin seemed to develop renewed optimism, and attended mandatory therapy classes.  She explored options for further psychological treatment, although these were not followed through.  Catlin's concussion symptoms, and hypoxic brain damage from her suicide attempt, began to make it difficult for her to train, which led to her being ruled out from competing in the UCI Track World Championship due to be held in Poland in late February.  She was devastated, and contemplated ending her cycling career.  On the morning of March 9th, 2019, Catlin's mother called Stanford police, concerned that her daughter had not responded to phone calls and texts for a couple of days.  On the police's arrival at the university, Catlin's lifeless body was found in her apartment.  She had committed suicide by helium asphyxiation the previous evening.  Kelly Catlin was just 23 years old.

Danny Kelleher

Daniel John Michael Kelleher - who was born on May 5th, 1966, in Southwark, London, England - was an English cricketer.  The son of John Kelleher and his wife, and the nephew of Harry Kelleher - who had played cricket for Surrey and Northamptonshire in the 1950s - Danny Kelleher was educated at St. Mary's Grammar School in Sidcup and at Erith College of Technology.  He represented Kent Schools at both rugby and cricket, and toured British Columbia with Kent Under-17s in 1983.  Kelleher was talent-spotted whilst playing at Dartford Cricket Club, joining Kent in 1985, and making his first-team debut two years later.  A popular and exuberant medium-fast bowler, Kelleher had a highly-promising first season, topping Kent's bowling  averages in 1987 with 34 wickets at an excellent average of 25.82.  That season, he took the only two five-wicket hauls of his career: 5 for 76 against Surrey at Tunbridge Wells, and a career-best 6 for 109 against Somerset at Bath.  In 1988, Kelleher scored a 42-ball 50 against the touring West Indians, with four sixes and five fours.  The following summer, 1989, he attained his highest first-class score: 53 not out against Derbyshire at Dartford.  However, as injuries began to affect his form, Kelleher found himself in and out of the side, and he was released by Kent at the end of the 1991 season.  Surrey signed him on a match-only contract the following summer, but he was unable to break into their side, and was released in 1993 having made no first-team appearances in two years.  Around this time, his girlfriend, an actress, also walked-out on him.  In 34 first-class matches, Keller scored 565 runs at an average of 15.27, with two 50s, and took 77 wickets at an average of 32.89.  In 31 List A (Limited-overs) matches, he scored 91 runs at 9.10, and took 22 wickets at 41.81.  Kelleher found a post coaching cricket in Argentina in 1994, but was unhappy there, and returned to England for the final time for a Christmas family gathering that year.  From there onwards, Kelleher's life began to gradually decline.  He wrote to several counties asking for a trial, but received no offers, although he did play a few second-team games for Glamorgan.  Kelleher's father said: "He became more depressed and anti-social, and developed a bit of a drink problem... He was a shy lad, who hid it under an extrovert bravado."  During 1995, Kelleher was prescribed anti-depressant tablets, and began to withdraw from his family, keeping himself to himself, and often not returning phone calls.  He made two suicide attempts, described by his father as, "Nothing more than cries for help".  On December 12th, 1995, having not seen his son for a while, John Kelleher went round to Danny's flat in Barnehurst, south-east London, only to come across his dead body, with bottles of alcohol and pills, and a suicide note, nearby.  Kelleher had killed himself by taking an overdose of Prozac.  Grahame Clinton, Kelleher's former coach at Surrey, later said: "Danny was a talented boy who always gave 100% on the field.  But he was also idle, and not prepared to put in the effort when he was not playing."  Clinton went on to say that he thought that most county clubs cared little about their former players.  Danny Kelleher was just 29 years old.

Albert Trott

Albert Edwin Trott - who was born on February 6th, 1873, in Abbotsford, Victoria, Australia - was an Australian cricketer, who had the unusual distinction of playing international cricket for both Australia and England.  One of eight children of Adolphus and Mary-Ann Trott, Albert's older brother, Harry, also played Test cricket for Australia.  A keen and determined cricketer from a young age, after only three first-class games for Victoria, Trott made his debut for Australia in the Third Test against England at Adelaide in 1895.  Playing with his brother Harry, and batting at number ten, Trott scored 110 runs without being dismissed in this match, whilst also taking 8 for 43 in England's second innings.  At the end of this series, which England won 3-2, Trott's Test batting average stood at 102.5, making it surprising he was not selected for the 1896 tour of England under the captainship of his brother, Harry.  Instead, Trott sailed to England independently, playing for M.C.C. from 1896, and for Middlesex from 1898.  In late 1896, he briefly returned to Australia, where he married 21-year-old Jessie Rice in 1897, before settling with her in England permanently.  In 1898, Trott became the leading wicket-taker in England, and in 1899 was one of Wisden's cricketers of the year after achieving the double of 200 wickets and 1,000 runs in the season.  Between December, 1898, and April, 1899, Trott played two matches for England against South Africa in South Africa which were retrospectively awarded Test status.  In those games, he scored 23 runs at 5.75, and took 17 wickets at 11.64.  When the Australians toured Britain in 1899, Trott, playing against them for M.C.C., achieved the feat for which he is still best-remembered: batting against Monty Noble, he hit a delivery over the Lord's pavilion and out of the ground, something not matched by any batsman since.  At this stage, Trott was considered the leading bowler in the world, and one of the top all-rounders, although he never played Test cricket again because both Australia and England both considered him, essentially, a foreigner.  He settled into a comfortable terraced house in Willesden, with his wife bearing him two daughters, Jessie and Mabel.  Trott's bowling quickly declined from its peak in 1899, when he took 239 wickets, to 1905, when he took only 62.  He drank heavily, and his weight increased rapidly, and he became known for his extramarital liaisons with women.  He had a brief renaissance in 1907, when, in his benefit match against Somerset, he took four wickets in four balls, and then took a hat-trick later in the same innings - the first time that two hat-tricks had been taken in the same first-class innings (and something that has only been achieved once since).  However, the subsequent early finish meant that the game only raised £800, leading Trott to comment that he had "bowled himself into the poorhouse".  Retiring in 2010, Trott took up umpiring, although by this time his wife had left him and returned to Australia with their children.  Trott himself left the family home, moving into lodgings.  In August of 1913, Trott received news that his father had entered an asylum, where he died that November.  His own health was also declining, as he developed dropsy, as well as a heart condition which was complicated by kidney pains.  In July of 1914, Trott's heart problems lead to him being hospitalised, but he discharged himself on July 28th.  On July 30th, he asked his landlady to bring him sleeping pills, but the chemist refused to supply them without a prescription.  Trott reportedly said, "I don't think I can get through another night", and proceeded to write his will on the back of a laundry ticket.  Following this, broke and broken, and wracked by days of pain, Albert Trott shot himself in the temple with a pistol at his lodgings in Harlesden, Middlesex, England.  He was 41 years old.       

Dale Roberts

Dale Roberts - who was born on October 22nd, 1986, in Horden, County Durham, England - was an English footballer who played as a goalkeeper for several teams between 2005 and 2010.  The son of George and Isabelle, he attended Easington Comprehensive School, and played for Cleveland Juniors F.C., later joining both Sunderland and Middlesbrough football academies.  As a scholar at Middlesbrough, he was part of their F.A. Youth Cup-winning squad in 2004 as a backup to David Knight.  In 2005, Roberts signed as a professional for Nottingham Forest, but failed to make any first-team appearances for Forest in his four years at the club, although he played many times whilst on loan to Eastwood Town, Alfreton Town, and Rushden and Diamonds, winning Rushden's player of the season award in 2008-'09.  He signed permanently for Rushden on January 2nd, 2009, and played 61 times for the club over the next season and a half.  Roberts's good form won him six caps for the England C team in 2009 and '10.  He was voted C team player of the season in 2009-'10.  His final game for the C team, and last in all senior football, was against Wales on September 14th, 2010.  In 2004, Roberts began a relationship with Lindsey Cowan, who had been at school with him.  However, they briefly split up in May of 2010 when Cowan had an affair with Paul Terry, the older brother of former England captain John Terry.  The press got hold of this story, causing Roberts considerable distress.  In September of 2010, Roberts injured his leg whilst playing for England C.  These incidents led to Roberts becoming depressed, and he began to suffer from anxiety and panic attacks, becoming reluctant to go out in case he was recognised after his appearances in the press.  He lost motivation, and started missing training sessions, causing consternation to his manager and agent, Justin Edinburgh and Cyrille Regis, respectively.  On November 19th, 2010, Roberts visited Rushden's club doctor, who prescribed him anti-depressants, which only enhanced his lethargy.  Apparently, he also asked for counselling, but received none.  Roberts was told by his manager that he would be starting his first game for Rushden and Diamonds for some time against his former club Eastwood Town in an F.A. Trophy match on December 14th, 2010.  The previous evening, his girlfriend returned home to find a note scribbled on the whiteboard in their kitchen: "I love Lindsey Elizabeth Cowan very very much. She is the love of my life."  The next morning, he sent Cowan a text message, saying he was scared about the upcoming game.  After Roberts failed to turn up for the match that day, police went round to his house in Higham Ferrers, Northamptonshire, where they discovered his lifeless body.  He had committed suicide by hanging.  Dale Roberts was just 24 years old.

Tom Allin

Thomas William Allin - who was born on November 27th, 1987, in Bideford, Devon, England - was an English cricketer who played for Warwickshire County Cricket Club.  The younger brother of Matthew Allin (who played two matches for Devon), and the son of Tony (who played cricket for Glamorgan in the 1970s) and Beverley Allin, Tom began playing for Bideford and North Devon Cricket Clubs, before signing for Warwickshire in 2008.  A right-arm fast-medium bowler, who also batted right-handed, he made his debut for Warwickshire on August 17th, 2011, in the Clydesdale Bank 40 against Surrey, where he scored 2 not out, and bowled two overs without taking a wicket.  He played his only first-class game against Middlesex, starting on May 8th, 2013, but he failed to score a run, and bowled 17 overs without taking a wicket.  These were Allin's only two first-team games for Warwickshire, and he was released prior to the 2014 season, but continued playing Minor Counties cricket for Devon, with his last appearance being against Shropshire in August of 2015.  He became involved in coaching Primary School sport in Barnstaple and Bideford, and was head of cricket at Shebbear College, as well as a coach at Bideford College.  In the winter, Allin played soccer for Northam Lions.  In early October of 2015, his brother was taken into hospital with a serious illness which caused Tom a lot of worry.  Later that same month, Tom was involved in a high-speed traffic collision near Clovelly, in which he suffered severe leg injuries.  He recovered well physically, but in early December he told a nurse that his mood was "up and down", and he was advised to seek support from anxiety and depression services, but he declined.  On January 4th, 2016, Allin was dropped off by a friend at around 7.30-8.00 p.m.; the friend found it "a bit unusual" that he said "bye" and gave her a "long hug" before departing.  Around 9 p.m. the same evening, Allin's body was seen by a motorist at the base of the A39 River Torridge Bridge in Bideford, Devon.  Resuscitation was attempted by passers-by, and then by emergency services, but to no avail.  Three suicide notes were found by police when his home was searched after his death.  All Hallows' Church in Woolsery, Devon, was packed for Allin's funeral service, with former England cricketers, Ian Bell, Jonathan Trott, and Ashley Giles, among the mourners.  Tom Allin was just 28 years old.

Elias Owen

Elias Owen - who was born in the first quarter of 1863, in Llanllechid near Bangor in north-west Wales - was a Welsh amateur footballer, who made three appearances for the Wales national team in 1884.  Ellis was one of thirteen children, and his elder brother, William Pierce Owen, and his cousins, Morgan Owen and Hugh Morgan-Owen, also played for Wales.  After grammar school, Owen studied theology at Lampeter College.  At Ruthin Grammar School, Owen was initially a half-back, before becoming a goalkeeper in 1882 when the regular 'keeper was unavailable for a match between Denbighshire and Liverpool F.A.  Impressing in this game, Owen was selected to play as a goalkeeper for Wales in the inaugural Home Championship match against Ireland on February 9th, 1884; Wales won this game 6-0, with Owen's brother William scoring two goals.  Owen played in Wales's following two games - a 0-4 loss to England, and a 1-4 defeat to Scotland - before being dropped from the team.  On September 19th, 1888, Owen returned to the family home at Efenechtyd.  The next morning, September 20th, he was discovered by his two sisters, Mary and Maggie, hanging from a tree in the churchyard.  Although he was still alive on being found, he died shortly after being cut down. Official reports say he was depressed over the results of his final examinations, although family sources claim he was depressed because his wife was having an affair.  Elias Owen was just 25 years old.

Zoe Tynan

Zoe Tynan - who was born on May 20th, 1998, in Mossley Hill, Liverpool, England - was an English footballer.  As a schoolgirl, Tynan excelled at rounders and cross-country running, as well as football.  Later concentrating on soccer, she was selected to represent England at under-15, under-17, and under-19 levels.  As a Youth player, she represented Liverpool Feds, Everton, and Manchester City, before signing for Manchester City's academy in 2015.  She was given her first-team debut when she played all 90 minutes of an F.A. Women's Cup quarter-final against Sporting Club Albion on April 3rd, 2016.  Though she wouldn't play any further games for Manchester City, her performance drew the attention of Fylde Ladies of the F.A. Women's Premier League.  Signing for Fylde, she played two games for them in 2016.  On August 30th, 2016, Tynan spoke to her sister, Beth, at the family home - saying she loved her, and that "everything would be okay" - before leaving at about 3.40 p.m.  At 4.09 p.m., she sent a text message to a friend, suggesting she was intending to end her own life.  C.C.T.V. cameras captured her "calmly" climbing down onto the railway tracks at West Allerton station at about 4.15 p.m., whereupon she was soon struck by a train travelling from Birmingham New Street to Liverpool Lime Street.  Paramedics pronounced her dead at the scene, and coroner Anita Bhardwaj later recorded a verdict of suicide.  Tynan had achieved good 'A'-level results, and hoped to become a professional footballer.  She was just 18 years old.  After her death, the Zoe Tynan's Spirit of Running award was set up in Liverpool to recognise similar children who lead others by example and encouragement; whilst her first football team, Liverpool Feds - whom she had joined as a six-year-old - created the Zoe Tynan Tournament for under-10 and under-12 7-a-side teams.  This tournament has been held each year since 2017 in her honour, played on May 20th to coincide with the date of her birth.

Martyn Rogers

Martyn Rogers - who was born on January 26th, 1960, in Nottingham, England - was an English association-football player.  After an outstanding record as a schoolboy, Rogers signed as a trainee for Manchester United in May, 1976, and as a professional in January, 1977.  He made his debut for United, at the age of 17, standing in for Arthur Albiston at left-back, on October 22nd, 1977, in a 0-4 away defeat at West Bromwich Albion.  This was to be Rogers's only first-team game for the club, and he was sold to Queen's Park Rangers - then managed by former United manager, Tommy Docherty - for £7,500 in July of 1979.  Rogers's career at Q.P.R. was equally short-lived, as he only made two first-team appearances, in the last two games of the 1979-80 season, both of which were won.  In May of 1981, he was given a free transfer to Australian club Sydney Olympic.  In five years at Sydney, Rogers helped the club win the Australian NSL Cup twice, in 1983 and 1985, before returning to England.  On Saturday, February 29th, 1992, Rogers made two phone calls: one to his mother, whom he told he was in Singapore; and one to a female friend, whom he told he was in Australia.  Later that same day, Rogers's lifeless body was found in a hire-car in a car-park in Ringwood, Hampshire, after he had fed the exhaust fumes through the window of his vehicle.  He had committed suicide at the age of 32.  Coincidentally, that same month, another Manchester United player of around the same age, Alan Davies, had killed himself in similar circumstances.

Arthur Woodcock

Arthur Woodcock - who was born on September 23rd, 1865, in Northampton, Northamptonshire, England - was an English cricketer.  When only a few months old, he moved to Leicestershire, where - as a right-arm fast bowler and a tailend batsman - he played 121 first-class matches for his adopted county between 1894 and 1908, as well as appearing for the short-lived London County Cricket Club in 1900. Woodcock's first engagement as a player was, in 1887, for Mitcham Cricket Club in Surrey.  His form there was so good that he was recommended as a cricket coach to Haverford College in Pennsylvania, U.S.A.; and he took up employment there between 1888 and 1894, continuing to play English County Cricket between July and September during these years.  In 1895, Woodcock became a member of the Lord's groundstaff, and during that season took 102 wickets at an average of just over 19 runs apiece; this was his most-successful season.  Woodcock was a poor batsman - averaging 8.31 over the course of his career, with a highest score of 62 against Lancashire at Old Trafford in 1898 - but was, during his prime in the late-1890s, considered the second-fastest bowler in England, shaded only by Charles Kortright.  In all, he took 548 wickets at an average of 22.28, with best figures of 9-28 against M.C.C. at Lord's in 1899.  As his county career wound down, he continued to play for M.C.C., and  also umpired some first-class matches in 1906. Woodcock was severely hampered by knee trouble during his later career; so much so that he was forced to drop out of the Leicestershire side in the 1903 season.  On May 14th, 1910, at Billesdon, Leicestershire, England, Arthur Woodcock committed suicide by "self-administered poison".  He was 44 years old.

Stuart Leary

Stuart Edward Leary - who was born on April 30th, 1933, in Green Point, Cape Town, South Africa - was a dual-code professional sportsman, who played soccer as a centre-forward, and cricket as an all-rounder.  Leary started his football career with Cape Town side, Clyde, before moving to English club, Charlton Athletic, in 1950, along with team-mate Eddie Firmani.  Making his debut in 1951, he became a prolific goalscorer, netting a record number of goals for the club: in total, Leary made 376 league appearances for Charlton, scoring 153 goals, until his departure for Queens Park Rangers in 1962.  At Q.P.R., he appeared in a further 94 league games, scoring 29 goals.  Leary played once for the England under-23 team in 1954, but was banned from playing for the full national team due to his foreign birthplace.  Leary had a parallel career as a county cricketer for Kent between 1951 and 1971.  A right-handed batsman, in first-class matches, he scored 16,517 runs at an average of 31.10, and took 146 wickets at an average of 33.80 with his leg-break bowling. Leary returned to South Africa after his sporting career ended.  Rumours circulated that he may have been homosexual, at a time when this was not widely accepted, particularly in sporting circles, although he had married, and then divorced, an older woman.  Fellow South African cricketer, Eddie Barlow, said that, at the time of Leary's death, he had, "...about five girlfriends on the go..."  In By His Own Hand, writer David Frith states that Leary had a fondness for resting his hand on a colleague's knee during team photographs; also, at the time of his death, three people who knew Leary apparently stated that he was concerned at the nationwide crackdown on juvenile vice, and that he was also worried he may have contracted the AIDS virus.  In 1985, Leary was replaced as coach of Western Province cricket team, and sometime thereafter began taking anti-depressant drugs.  Leary's body was found on Table Mountain near Cape Town on August 23rd, 1988. It was believed he committed suicide two days earlier, on August 21st, by throwing himself off a precipice.  He was 55 years old.

Dave Clement

David Thomas Clement - who was born on February 2nd, 1948, in Battersea, south-west London, England - was an English footballer.  Clement signed as a professional with Queens Park Rangers in 1965, making his debut in the 1966-67 season - a memorable one for Q.P.R., as they won the Third Division Championship by a twelve-point margin, and became the first Third-Division side to win a major trophy - the League Cup - by defeating West Bromwich Albion 3-2 at Wembley.  A right-sided full-back, Clement played a total of 472 games for Q.P.R. between 1965 and 1979, scoring 28 goals.  During this time, he also won five full international caps for England.  He was sold to Bolton Wanderers in 1979, before moving on to Fulham in 1980.  He played a further nine games, scoring two goals, for Wimbledon during the 1981-82 season, leaving him with a career total of 532 league games and 30 goals.  As his football career wound down, Clement began to become depressed; and, on March 31st, 1982, he committed suicide by ingesting weedkiller.  He was 34 years old.  Dave Clement's son, Neil Clement, who was only three years old at the time of his father's death, also became a professional footballer, spending the majority of his career at West Bromwich Albion.  His eldest son, Paul, became a non-league footballer, and later a professional coach and manager, becoming head coach at Swansea City in Wales.

Mike Thalassitis

Michael Thalassitis - who was born on January 19th, 1993, in Edmonton, London, England - was an English footballer and television personality.  Starting his career with Stevenage in Division Two of the Football League, Thalassitis, a striker, subsequently played for several non-league teams. In all, between 2011 and 2017, he played 151 games, scoring 36 goals, for various teams.  Of Greek-Cypriot descent, Thalassitis also played  three games for the Cypress under-19 side, and four for their under-21s. He was called up for Cyprus's senior team in May, 2014, but was unable to travel to the game against Japan, as he had ruptured his anterior cruciate ligament in the final game of the league season whilst on loan from Stevenage at Ebbsfleet United.  On May 29th, 2017, Thalassitis was announced as part of the cast for the third series of the reality television show, Love Island.  He and fellow contestant Jessica Shears, along with their respective partners Olivia Attwood and Dom Lever, emerged among the three couples with the fewest public votes for Favourite Couple.  In 2018, he joined the fourth series of Celebs Go Dating.  On March 15th, 2019, Mike Thalassitis hanged himself in a park in Edmonton, north London, England.  He was 26 years old.

John Lyons

John Patrick Lyons - who was born on November 8th, 1956, in Buckley, Flintshire, north-east Wales - was a Welsh footballer, who played for several teams in the Football League between 1974 and 1982.  As a youngster at Elfed High School, Lyons excelled at basketball, playing for the Wales under-15 team at that sport, before signing as a professional footballer with Wrexham in September of 1975. Playing as a striker, he scored 23 goals in 86 games for Wrexham, helping them to the Third Division title in the 1977-78 season.  He subsequently played for Millwall, Cambridge United, and Colchester United; in total, playing 195 league games, and scoring 58 goals.  Whilst at his last club, Colchester, Lyons befriended his fellow striker and notorious hardman, Roy McDonough.  Lyons had replaced fan-favourite, Kevin Bremner, in the side, and thus became unpopular with his own side's supporters, and began to suffer from depression. Lyons had apparently said several times to McDonough that, if the crowd abuse didn't stop, he would hang himself.  On November 9th, 1982, Lyons played in a home game for Colchester United against Chester City at Layer Road, which his team won 1-0.  Two days later, on November 11th, 1982, Lyons went out for a drinking spree with McDonough.  He thereafter returned to his home in the village of Layer de la Haye, Essex, England, and hanged himself.  John Lyons was just 26 years old.

Mark Saxelby

Mark Saxelby was an English cricketer who was born in Worksop, Nottinghamshire, England, on January 4th, 1969.  A tall left-handed batsman, who bowled right-arm medium-pace, Saxelby started his career with his native county, Nottinghamshire, where he enjoyed several successful seasons, often averaging in the mid-thirties as a batsman, although continual shoulder and back injuries gradually curtailed his bowling.  He then moved to Durham, where he scored 181 on his County Championship debut for his new team.  However, patchy form saw him drop down the batting order, and he soon moved into Minor Counties cricket, winning the MCC Trophy whilst playing for Cheshire in 1996. He played one game for Derbyshire in 2000.  After suffering from depression, Mark Saxelby died in the Queen's Medical Centre, Nottingham, England, on October 12th, 2000, after ingesting weedkiller.  He was 31 years old.

Willie Llewelyn

William Dillwyn Llewelyn - who was born on April 1st, 1868, in Aberdulais, Glamorgan, Wales - was a Welsh cricketer, who played sixteen first-class matches for Oxford University between 1890 and 1891. An old Etonian, and the son of Sir John Dillwyn-Llewelyn and Caroline Julia Hicks-Beach, he played four further first-class matches, in 1893, for the Gentlemen of England and Marylebone Cricket Club, after his graduation from Oxford.  Llewelyn also became treasurer of Glamorgan County Cricket Club, then a second-class county side, in 1893.  Just a week before he was due to marry the daughter of Lord Dynevor, Llewelyn's body was found in woodland near his home in Penllergare House near Swansea.  He had shot himself in the head the previous day - August 24th, 1893.  Willie Llewelyn was just 25 years old.

Robert Enke

Robert Enke, who was born on August 24th, 1977, in Jena, East Germany, was a German football goalkeeper.  He played most-notably for the German club Hannover 96, as well as winning 8 caps for the German national team.  He was also team captain of Hannover 96 from the 2007-8 season until the end of his career, and was twice voted best goalkeeper in the German Bundesliga.  Enke had been expected to be Germany's number-one 'keeper during the 2010 World Cup, but he had been struggling to cope with the death of his daughter in 2006, and had been treated by a psychiatrist after suffering from depression.  On the night of November 10th, 2009, Enke committed suicide by standing in the path of a regional express train at a level crossing in Eilvese, Neustadt am Rubenberge, Germany. He was 32 years old.

Peter Roebuck

Peter Michael Roebuck was an English cricketer, who was born in Oddington, Oxfordshire, England, on March 6th, 1956.  One of six children, his younger brother Paul played 22 first-class matches for Cambridge University, Gloucestershire, and Glamorgan.  Peter played, mostly-notably, for Somerset County Cricket Club between 1974 and 1991, a team he also captained.  Mainly used as an opening batsman, Roebuck played a total of 335 first-class matches for Somerset, scoring 17,558 runs at an average of 37.27 with 33 centuries and a highest score of 221 not out.  He also took 72 wickets at an average of 49.16 with his spin bowling.  In 298 one-day games, he scored 7,244 runs at 29.81, and took 51 wickets at 25,09.  Captaining Somerset for two seasons between 1986 and 1988, Roebuck became a controversial figure when he was instrumental in terminating the contracts of the county's two overseas stars, Joel Garner and Viv Richards.  The ensuing rumpus resulted in star all-rounder Ian Botham leaving the club for Worcestershire.  In 1988, Roebuck was one of the Wisden Cricketers of the Year.  Whilst working as a commentator in South Africa in 1999, Roebuck met three young black cricketers, offering to coach them whilst they lived at his home in England.  He warned them beforehand that he would use corporal punishment if they broke his "house rules".  He caned all three 19-year-old men at different times on their clothed buttocks for misbehaviour, and in 2001 was given a suspended jail sentence for common assault.  After a ten-year spell playing Minor Counties cricket for Devon between 1992 and 2002, Roebuck moved to Australia, where he became a respected cricket writer and broadcaster.  He became an Australian citizen, and also owned a house in South Africa.  On November 12th, 2011, Roebuck was visiting South Africa to report on a cricket match, when police arrived at his hotel, desiring to speak to him about an alleged sexual assault on a 26-year-old Zimbabwean man.  Roebuck then returned to his hotel room, where he jumped from his sixth-floor balcony.  He subsequently died from severe head injuries.  He was 55 years old.

Alan Davies

Alan Davies was an English-born Welsh international footballer. Although born in Manchester on December 5th, 1961, Davies's Welsh parentage qualified him to play for Wales, for whom he won 13 international caps between 1983 and 1990, as well as playing six times for the Wales under-21 side.  Signing as a trainee for Manchester United as a 16-year-old in July of 1978, he put pen to paper on his first professional contract just five months later.  Davies made his first-team debut for United in a 1-0 home win against Southampton on May 1st, 1982.  He only played ten competitive games for The Red Devils, but did play both games in the 1983 F.A. Cup Final, when United beat Brighton and Hove Albion in a replay, resulting in him winning the only major medal of his career.  Unfortunately, after this success, Davies suffered a bad injury in a pre-season friendly, which resulted in him being out of first-team contention for six months during the 1983-84 season.  He returned to the team in memorable fashion, scoring his only goal for the side when coming on as substitute in a 1-1 draw with Juventus in a European Cup Winners' Cup semi-final first leg at Old Trafford.  Sadly, he only played three more league games that season, and none the following season, and was sold to Newcastle United in 1985, also playing on loan for Charlton and Carlisle whilst with The Magpies.  He later had two spells at Swansea City, either side of a spell with Bradford City in 1989-90.  During his second spell at Swansea, he found himself a key player in a side that was struggling towards the bottom of the Third Division.  On February 4th, 1992, Davies dropped-off his daughter, Katie (aged 4), at school, before driving out to Horton on the Gower Peninsula, where he committed suicide by carbon monoxide poisoning.  Although no-one knows for certain what made him kill himself, it later transpired that Davies - like fellow Welsh international footballer, Gary Speed (who also committed suicide) - had been coached as a youngster by serial paedophile, Barry Bennell.  Six weeks after Davies died, his second daughter, Sophie, was born to his wife, Deborah.  Both his daughters have since competed in running events to raise money for a mental-health charity.  Alan Davies was 30 years old.

Justin Fashanu

Justinus Soni Fashanu was an English footballer, who played for Norwich City and Nottingham Forest, amongst other teams. He was born in Hackney, London, England, on February 19th, 1961, to a Nigerian barrister and a Guyanese nurse, and was the older brother of fellow footballer, John.  Fashanu was most famous for scoring BBC's Goal of the Season in 1980, with a spectacular effort for Norwich against Liverpool.  He excelled at Norwich, his first club, scoring 40 goals in 103 senior appearances for The Canaries, and was selected six times for the England under-21 side.  Fashanu's 19 league goals in the 1980-81 season were not enough to prevent Norwich's relegation from the First Division, and he was sold to Nottingham Forest in August of 1981, becoming Britain's first black million-pound footballer in the process.  His career then stalled, after Forest manager Brian Clough became disturbed by finding out about Fashanu's visits to gay nightclubs and bars.  His confidence and form deserting him, Fashanu scored just three goals in 32 league games for Forest in the 1981-82 season.  He was loaned to Southampton, who were prevented from buying him by lack of funds.  Fashanu was sold to Notts County for £150,000 in December, 1982.  He scored 20 goals in 64 games for The Magpies, but this was not enough to stop the club having back-to-back relegations.  Soon after joining Brighton and Hove Albion in June, 1985, Fashanu suffered a knee injury which looked to have ended his career.  After travelling to the U.S. for surgery, he subsequently played for a number of clubs in England, Scotland, the U.S.A., Canada, and Sweden.  In an interview with The Sun newspaper on October 22nd, 1990, Fashanu came out as homosexual, becoming the first (and, so far, only) prominent player in English football to do so, and thereafter struggled to find regular employment as a professional footballer, as well as becoming the subject of crowd abuse.  His brother, John, described Justin as an "outcast" after his admission.  On April 13th, 1992, whilst playing for Torquay United, Fashanu received a £265 fine and was banned for driving for 28 days after being fund guilty of speeding and failing to produce his driver's licence.  In March, 1998, after moving to the United States, Fashanu was alleged to have sexually assaulted a 17-year-old boy after a night of drinking.  Homosexual acts were illegal at the time in the state of Maryland, where Fashanu was living.  Fashanu fled back to England, where - on May 3rd, 1998 - his body was found hanged in a lock-up garage in Shoreditch, London.  His suicide note denied the charges, claiming the sex act was consensual, and that he had returned to England as he wouldn't get a fair trial in the U.S. due to his homosexuality.  The Times and the B.B.C. reported that an arrest warrant had been issued by Howard County District Court on April 3rd, that he had been charged with second-degree sexual assault and first-degree assaults punishable by up to 20 years in jail, and that Howard County police would have requested his extradition had they known he had fled to England.  Justin Fashanu was just 37 years old.

Gary Speed

Gary Andrew Speed was a Welsh footballer and football manager.  Born on September 8th, 1969, in Mancot, Flintshire, Wales, Speed made 677 league appearances in a 22-year playing career, which finished in 2010.  He also played 85 times for the Welsh national soccer side (making him Wales's second-most-capped player), captaining them on 44 occasions.  His successful career encompassed spells at Leeds United, Everton, Newcastle United, Bolton Wanderers, and Sheffield United.  After retirement as a player, Speed managed Sheffield United and then the Wales national team.  In 2010, he was awarded an M.B.E. for his services to football.  Speed's first competitive game as Wales manager was a 0-2 home defeat to local rivals, England, resulting in Wales slumping to an all-time-low F.I.F.A. world ranking of 117th.  However, several good results followed, lifting Wales's ranking to 45th, and being awarded 'Best Movers' at the end of 2011, after amassing more ranking points than any other nation in 2011.  Speed's last game as Wales manager was a 4-1 home win against Norway in a friendly on November 12th that year.  On November 26th, 2011, Speed appeared as a pundit on the BBC programme, Football Focus, before driving back to his home in Huntington, Cheshire, England. The following morning, November 27th, just before 7 a.m., his wife found his dead body hanging from the roof of the family garage.  An inquest into his death heard that the strain of football management had put strain on Speed's marriage to Louise, and they had argued on the night prior to his death.  His mother, Carol, described Gary as a "glass-half-empty person", and his wife said he was a "somewhat closed character".  Four days before dying, Speed had texted his wife suggesting the possibility of suicide, although he then rejected this out of concern for his family.  As a boy, Speed had been coached by serial sex offender Barry Bennell, although Speed had denied ever being abused; however, one of Bennell's victims claimed he had seen Speed being assaulted, but the inquest was unable to prove this.  Speed's funeral was held on December 11th, 2011, in the village of Hawarden, Flintshire, and was attended by 250 people.  He was later cremated at Pentre Bychan Crematorium, Wrexham.  A memorial match was held in his honour at the Cardiff City Stadium on February 29th, 2012, in which Costa Rica beat Wales 2-0.  Gary Speed was 42 years old.