Two months after surviving the devastating bar fire in Crans-Montana that claimed 41 lives, Luxembourg international Eliot Thelen joined Tahirys Dos Santos and his girlfriend Coline for the ceremonial kick-off before a Ligue 1 match between FC Metz and Brest on Sunday.
Thelen, a midfielder who currently plays in Pescara, Italy, was invited to the Stade Saint-Symphorien alongside Dos Santos, a young Metz defender, and his girlfriend Coline. The trio were among the 115 people injured in the New Year’s Eve fire at the Le Constellation bar, which also left another 58 victims still receiving treatment in hospitals to this day.
The stadium announcer described the three as “heroes” in front of 18,000 spectators.
Both footballers met at the FC Metz training centre. They had travelled to Crans-Montana with another friend to celebrate New Year’s Eve when the tragedy unfolded.
On the night of the disaster, Thelen was on the ground floor of the bar when the fire broke out. The U19 national player managed to escape to safety with only slight injuries.
Dos Santos and his girlfriend Coline, however, were not as fortunate. The Metz player went back into the flames to rescue Coline, who was trapped in the toilets on the underground floor. When he reemerged, his friend Thelen provided him with initial care in the first minutes.
Dos Santos sustained burns on 30% of his body, including his back, the back of his head, and his arms. He has since undergone one surgery. Coline was airlifted from Switzerland to Antwerp in Belgium, where she was placed in a medically induced coma for three weeks. Only her chest, stomach, and face were spared from burns. She has undergone three surgeries.
It was not until 28 January that the couple was able to see each other again at the hospital in Metz.
Both Dos Santos and Coline were only recently discharged from the Metz hospital. Considering the severity of his injuries, Dos Santos has recovered relatively well over the past weeks. He has even resumed light running training. His doctors, however, are now tasked with slowing him down rather than motivating him on what remains a long rehabilitation journey.
The invitation from FC Metz was not the first show of solidarity from the football world. On the weekend of 20 February, Paris Saint-Germain president Nasser al-Khelaïfi invited Dos Santos and Coline to the honorary stands during the match between PSG and Metz. The day before that fixture, the 19-year-old player visited his teammates for the first time since the fire at the training centre in Frescaty.
