Pétanque player, 68, dies after being 'hit in head with metal boule'

The man was allegedly struck by his 81-year-old opponent, who has since been arrested, the public prosecutor says. Pétanque player, 68, dies after being 'hit in head with metal boule' Copyright current_year BBC. All rights reserved. The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. Read about our approach to external linking. Copyright current_year BBC. All rights reserved. The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. Read about our approach to external linking. Three metal Pétanque boules sit apart from eachother on a gravel floor, all three are shining in the sunlight. A 68-year-old pétanque player has died after allegedly being hit with a metal boule during a dispute with a rival team in the French Atlantic resort of Mimizan. The man was reportedly struck after an argument broke out between one team that regularly plays on the beach and another that plays in town. The dispute started when the beach group asked to play in town while in search of shade during a heatwave, witnesses told local media. An 81-year-old has been arrested and is being held in custody, according to the Mont-de-Marsan prosecutor's office. Reginald Jones, wearing a brown and green jacket, stood in front of a petanque pitch. Pétanque player shares secret to reaching 100 A woman cools herself with a handheld electric fan Record-breaking heatwave develops across Europe "According to the evidence … it seems that it is the 81-year-old man who struck the victim, who is deceased, with a pétanque boule," Alexa Dubourg, the public prosecutor in Mont-de-Marsan, told local paper Sud Ouest. She said the incident was "an argument which degenerated into a physical [confrontation]". Investigations are continuing to determine the role played by each person in attendance at the boulodrome on 17 June, she added. Pétanque is a French game that involves rolling hollow steel balls as close as possible to a small wooden ball. Local radio station Ici Gascogne said the man did not immediately die of his injuries, but instead collapsed minutes later after suffering a heart attack. One local resident told AFP news agency: "There is a mega rivalry between the beach pétanque players and those in the town but I didn't think it was at that level." A crowd of people carry a banner reading 'never again' and featuring a picture of Lyhanna during a protest outside French town buries murdered child as questions mount over police failings File pic showing Patrick Bruel in a black cardigan, black hair and a white T-shirt French singer Patrick Bruel under formal investigation for rape France's World Cup winner Olivier Giroud explains why iconic Les Bleus striker Kylian Mbappe is misunderstood, and seen as arrogant when he's not. France midfielder Adrien Rabiot raises concerns about the quality of the pitch at the New York New Jersey Stadium, describing it as "more like an artificial surface". Police now believe Waleed Saeed had dozens more victims, who they are now appealing to come forward. Police praised the woman for her testimony, which led to her rapist being jailed for six years. Roman Lavrynovych 22, was jailed for seven years and Stanislav Carpiuc, 27, for two. The defence team reverse course a day after saying they would argue he suffered "extreme emotional disturbance". Villagers are furious at what they have called "wanton destruction" of the Cardiac Hill rails.