TRAGEDY IN GERMANY
Police confirm death of Germany keeper Enke
Germany and Hannover 96 goalkeeper Robert Enke has died after being hit by a train and German police have confirmed that first indications point to suicide.
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Robert Enke: Germany keeper has died
• Uli on depression in football
• Germany stunned by apparent suicide
The 32-year-old died close to his home in Neustadt-Eilvese, Hannover, near a railway level crossing. "First indications point to suicide," a media officer for the Niedersachsen police said.
"At 1825 (1725GMT) he was run over by a regional express train running between Hamburg and Bremen," said police spokesman Stefan Wittke. "The train was travelling at the speed of 160-kph."
The player's friend and consultant Joerg Neblung told reporters: "I can confirm this is a case of suicide. He took his own life just before six (pm). There will be a press conference tomorrow with more details."
Enke won eight international caps and was in the running to play at the World Cup in South Africa next year. However, he missed Germany's last three qualifiers with a stomach virus and having just returned to action after almost two months out was omitted from the latest squad.
His national team colleagues learned of the tragic news of his death after training in Bonn on Tuesday and Germany's general manager Oliver Bierhoff said: "We are all shocked. We are lost for words."
The president of the German Football Association (DFB) Dr Theo Zwanziger added that he and the rest of the football community in Germany "are deeply distressed and in mourning".
"All our sympathy goes to the wife of Robert Enke and his family," he added.
Hannover president Martin Kind said: "This is a tragedy."
Enke, born in Jena in the former East Germany, also played club football for Borussia Moenchengladbach and Benfica and had a brief spell at Barcelona before stints with Fenerbahce and Tenerife.
Enke's daughter Lara died in 2006 of a rare heart condition when she was just two. He leaves behind his wife, Teresa, and an eight-month-old daughter the coupled had adopted.
ROBERT ENKE FACTFILE
1977: Born on August 24 in Jena in central Germany.
1985: Signs for the junior team of local club SV Jena.
1986: Moves to city rivals FC Carl Zeiss Jena.
1995-96: Makes his professional debut for Carl Zeiss Jena against Hannover.
1996: Joins Borussia Monchengladbach.
1997: Makes Germany Under-21 debut.
1998: Makes his Bundesliga debut in a 3-0 win over Schalke on August 15.
1999: Moves to Portugal to sign for Benfica - managed by German Jupp Heynckes - and is promptly named as captain.
July: Is named in Germany's squad for the Confederations Cup, but does not feature in the tournament.
2002: Moves to Barcelona on a free transfer, but makes just four first-team appearances - only one of them in the league - in three seasons.
2003: Moves on loan to Turkish side Fenerbahce, but terminates his year-long deal after a single appearance in which he is pelted with missiles by the club's fans.
2004: January: Begins a more successful loan spell with Tenerife, then in Spain's Segunda Division.
July: Returns to the Bundesliga with Hannover on an initial two-year deal.
2006: September 17: Enke's daughter Lara dies at the age of two from a heart defect.
December 25: Signs a new contract to the end of the 2009-10 season.
2007: March 27: Makes his international debut in a 1-0 defeat to Denmark.
July 23: Is elected as club captain by his Hannover team-mates.
2008: October 8: Breaks a bone in his left hand in training with the national team, ruling him out for two months.
2008-09: Named as the Bundesliga's goalkeeper of the season.
2009: September: Suffers a bacterial infection, ruling him out for six games.
November 10: Police in Germany confirm Enke has died, aged 32, in an accident at a level crossing.
