•Chloe Waddell died after suffering from an undiagnosed serious heart defect
•Had been training four times a week in hope of making 2016 Rio team

•She had a heart almost twice the normal size for a girl her age, experts said
•The night before her death she became unwell after drinking alcohol
• Combination of her natural disease process and alcohol consumption resulted in her having cardiac arrhythmia or cardiac arrest, coroner ruled

A teenage Olympic swimming hopeful died after suffering from an undiagnosed serious heart defect, an inquest heard.

Chloe Waddell, 16, endured 5am training starts four days a week as well as evening sessions in the hope of representing Team GB at Rio in 2016.

But Miss Waddell, from Timperley, Cheshire, who had already represented her country in the sport, had a heart almost twice the normal size for a girl her age, the inquest at Manchester Coroner’s Court heard.

Just hours before her death on February 3 this year, her mother Fiona told the hearing she had sent her daughter a text congratulating her on winning a clutch of awards at her local swimming club’s presentation night.
She was found unresponsive in her bed the next morning by her father David after attending a party with other youngsters at a friend’s house.

Miss Waddell had become unwell at the party after downing vodka shots and cider and the alcohol may have interfered with her natural heart rhythm, although she could have died at any time from the condition, the inquest heard.

Coroner Nigel Meadows, giving a narrative verdict, said: ‘There’s a combination of natural disease and the unnatural effects of alcohol.

‘Chloe suffered from undiagnosed hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, which is a serious heart condition which can lead to unexpected and sudden death.
‘A combination of her natural disease process and alcohol consumption resulted in her having cardiac arrhythmia or cardiac arrest, from which she could not be resuscitated.
‘Chloe had no idea she had this heart condition, you would not know and no-one was to know.

‘It’s very likely, in my judgment, at some point Chloe was going to have a serious problem.’
The teenager had competed in Olympic trials against Rebecca Adlington and had swum at the National and British Championships in the 200m, 400m, 800m freestyle and open water events.

She had also been selected to attend British Swimming talent camps including an open water development camp last year after winning a bronze medal in the 800m freestyle at the UK School Games.

Miss Waddell, a member of both Swim Trafford and Altrincham Swimming Club, had been at an awards ceremony the evening before, where she was presented with an outstanding achievement award.

Her mother said her daughter did four 5am swimming sessions along with four evening sessions each week.
After her parents accompanied her to the swimming club awards, Miss Waddell went on to the party at a friend’s house.

Mrs Waddell told the inquest: ‘I sent her a text partway through the evening, she should be very proud of herself for the awards she got.’

Around 11.30pm her parents went to fetch Chloe home from the party as she was feeling unwell.
Mrs Waddell said her daughter was ‘very apologetic’ and, although she had been drinking, did not appear very drunk and was still walking and talking and awake.

During the night Miss Waddell got up several times and had been sick in a bucket at the side of her bed.
At around 8am her father went in to check on her.

Mr Waddell noticed her lips were discoloured and she was cool to the touch.

An ambulance was called while her mother attempted CPR and she was rushed to Wythenshawe Hospital but doctors were unable to save her.
Karan Mahadad, a friend of Miss Waddell who held the party, said around 15 youngsters attended and he thought the teenager had drunk a can of Strongbow cider and ‘five or six’ shots of vodka and had later been sick.

She was taken to a bedroom to lie down and given water before her parents arrived to collect her.

Dr Michael Scott, who carried out the post-mortem examination, said tests showed the alcohol in Chloe’s system was around twice the drink-drive limit when she left the party.

He also said the teenager’s heart was much bigger and heavier than normal and almost twice the size it should be in girls her age.

Dr Scott said her condition, hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, only affects one in every 500 people and is caused by a mutation in genes. It is nothing to do with straining the heart through physical exercise due to her swimming.

He said the condition can have no symptoms and it particularly affects young people because the heart grows quickly during adolescence.
He added: ‘I think she could have died at any time in the future.’

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