‘I was in pain, like someone sticking needles in my head’ says rugby star who suffered cardiac arrest after taking snus
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FRENCH rugby star Hassane Kolingar suffered a frightening heart attack after taking snus. Kolingar was at the wedding of Racing 92 team-mate Ibrahim Diallo when he took the tobacco product. Snus is taken by placing the tobacco patch behind the upper lip -which enables nicotine to be absorbed - and is common among sports stars.
![[Rugby star Hassane Kolingar suffered a frightening heart attack after taking snus]](https://www.thesun.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/hassane-kolingar-racing-92-racing-960467586.jpg?strip=all&w=640)
But Kolingar revealed he was taken to hospital in the summer following a scare while taking snus. He told Midi Olympique: “When I got there [to the wedding], I stuck a snus against my gum and sat down while waiting for the bride and groom. “It’s not illegal – there’s tobacco in it but it’s real s***, I think. At one point, I burst out laughing and immediately felt pressure in my chest.
![[Snus is rife within sports]](https://www.thesun.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/man-opens-plastic-snus-952378940.jpg?strip=all&w=960)
"My heart was beating really hard and I was sweating a lot; seeing stars. “I thought I was just having a hypoglycaemic episode and, so I would not ruin the ceremony, I moved aside. "My eardrums were banging, I felt like someone was sticking needles in my head.
“I was in pain, really bad pain and my eyes were rolling back. I was going into cardiac arrest.”. Snus is a form of smokeless tobacco most typically popular in Scandinavia. A variant of dry snuff, it is placed under the upper lip for extensive periods.
Sale of snus is illegal across the European Union, with the exception of Sweden, where it originated in the 18th century. But it is also manufactured in the US, where production standards are typically lower than in Sweden and significant quantities of sweeteners tend to be used.
