Grief counselors are helping students at a Fort Worth high school Monday following the death of a star athlete over the weekend.
Malik Cisse, 17, was a star soccer player at Carter-Riverside High School who moved to Fort Worth from the African nation of Togo as a child.
During a team picnic at Gateway Park Saturday night, Cisse jumped into the Trinity River and never came up.
He was under water for 40 minutes before rescue crews pulled him out and tried to save him, but he died at the hospital.
Cisse dreamed of following in the footsteps of his older cousin and role model, Theo Nabassi, who played soccer at Texas Wesleyan University three years ago.
"He looks up to me. He played with me. I taught him how to play soccer," said Nabassi. "Soccer was his passion, but we include his passion with school. He was really involved in soccer. It's what he wanted to do."
Family members said Cisse planned on visiting Texas Wesleyan next week and talking to the soccer coach.
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"We don't have words to explain what's going on with our family. It is a tragedy. I have no words to explain," Nabassi said.
Details on a memorial service for Cisse have not yet been released.
