Eagles Fan, 18, Dies After Falling from Light Pole During NFC Title Game Celebration

Tyler Sabapathy, an 18-year-old gymnast and student at Temple University, died as a result of injuries sustained during celebrations in the city of Philadelphia after the Eagles defeated the Washington Commanders in the NFC Championship Game last Sunday.

Per Sharrie Williams of ABC 6 in Philadelphia, Sabapathy was celebrating by climbing a light pole on Market St. and 15th St. when he lost his footing and appeared to hit his head on the concrete sidewalk.

Emergency medical personnel transported Sabapathy to Jefferson Hospital with a brain injury, and he was pronounced dead on Tuesday.

Temple issued a statement about Sabapathy included in Williams' report:

"It is with deep sadness that we write to share news of the death of first-year student Tyler Sabapathy. Over the weekend, Tyler sustained critical injuries and ultimately passed away this afternoon. The loss of a promising 18-year-old man like Tyler is both tragic and traumatic. There are no words that can make sense of it, and the entire Temple community mourns his passing. Our hearts go out to Tyler's family, friends, classmates and all who knew and loved him."

Sabapathy, who is originally from Toronto, committed to Temple in February 2024. He was majoring in exercise and sports science.

The university's statement noted Sabapathy won more than 120 gymnastics medals in provincial, regional and international competitions.

Philly fans climbing light posts has been such a staple of Eagles games after big wins that the city has taken precautions to grease the poles ahead of time in an effort to prevent this from happening.

Williams noted that Philadelphia city officials didn't confirm if that was the case on Sunday in part because they don't want to release public safety tactics.