August 12, 2020 - Young Croatia national team player Luka Lucic, who played for Stuttgarter Kickers, has died in a tragic accident in Germany.
Vecernji List reports that a 16-year-old was seriously injured in a collision with a train on the U8 line in Ostfildern (Esslingen district in Baden-Württemberg) on Tuesday afternoon at Stuttgarter Straße between Ruit and Heumaden, and later died from the accident.
As Fenix-magazine reveals, the victim was young Croatia national team player Luka Lucic, who played for Stuttgarter Kickers. Lucic made three appearances for the U-17 Croatia national team. According to the German police, Lucic was walking from the direction of Ruit on the bike path on the right side of Stuttgarter Straße. Lucic then wanted to cross the railway line at a crossing equipped with a flashing light.
According to current information, he overlooked the train going in the direction of Ruit.
Despite an emergency stop and a warning signal, the 56-year-old train driver failed to prevent the collision with Lucic. The 16-year-old suffered serious injuries and had to be flown to the clinic by helicopter after receiving first aid from a doctor.
According to the latest police findings, the young man died on Tuesday night. The train driver and passengers were unharmed. The railway, and part of both the Stuttgarter Straße and the transition area were closed until 5:45 am. A fire brigade with six vehicles and 20 firefighters was on duty at the scene of the accident.
Rescue services and an ambulance doctor were at the scene with eleven ambulance services and an ambulance helicopter. The police were on duty with a total of four patrol cars. An expert witness was summoned by the order of the Stuttgart State Attorney's Office. Traffic police have launched an investigation and are asking witnesses who saw the course of the accident to call 0711/39900.
Luka Lucic was born in 2003 in Germany and has participated in several activities of Croatia's youth teams. At the end of 2019, he was invited to a winter camp, and in February 2020, at a friendly tournament in Spain, he made his first appearances for the Croatia U-17 national team.
To read more about sport in Croatia, follow TCN's dedicated page.
