Clarissa was a French and Italian student at Trinity Hall at the University of Cambridge and matriculated in October 2020.
She embodied the work hard play hard mindset. First class grades, first in the revs queue, first up the next day for her morning runs to Grantchester. Her cackle was outrageously infectious, her positivity unwavering, her singing atrocious, and her love, ambition and achievements boundless.
On her year abroad in Paris, Clarissa collapsed and passed away from an undiagnosed heart condition just before her 21st birthday. Ultimately, had the right checks been done, she would still be with us today.
Clarissa isn’t the only student here to have passed away due to a lack of checks; 1 in 250 youths aged 14-35 have an undiagnosed life-threatening cardiac condition. We want to prevent more tragedies and to give people the opportunity to test before it’s too late.
Knowing of a condition early gives people an informed choice about their life and their sport and fitness regime. With appropriate interventions ranging from adapted lifestyle, beta blockers or an implantable defibrillator, affected young people will have the chance to play sport safely.
“You couldn’t not love her straight away, and it meant that she really did bring people together. In her death, as in her life, she’s doing that- still bringing people together.”
- Extract from Clementine Lussiana's Varsity article
