Former Honduras international Juan Carlos Garcia died Monday after a battle with leukemia, his former clubs announced. Garcia was 29.
Garcia, a defender who most recently played with Wigan Athletic, was diagnosed with the illness in January 2015. He received treatment in England before returning to Honduras toward the end of 2017, according to a Wigan news release. Garcia died in the Honduran capital of Tegucigalpa with his family and friends nearby. Honduran media reports said his body is being transported to his hometown of Tela for memorial services.
"This is such tragic news and we send our deepest condolences as a club to Juan Carlos’ family and friends who have had to sit by and watch this sad story unfold over the past few years," Wigan chairman David Sharpe said in a statement.