Supercigs founder and former Wolves director Kevin Threlfall on road to recovery
Self-made multi-millionaire and former Wolves director Kevin Threlfall was out of intensive care and on the road to recovery today after suffering a cardiac arrest while playing golf.
The businessman, who founded the Supercigs chain on Wolverhampton market and eventually sold it for £530m, collapsed and was saved by quick-thinking fellow players while playing in a competition at the South Staffordshire Golf Club in Wolverhampton last week.
Golfers Steve Woodward and Martin Knowles – both first-aid trained former policemen – successfully battled to keep him alive with the help of golf club official Ian Guest.
They used their training and the club's defibrillator to save the life of Mr Threlfall, aged 64, who lives in Perton, during the critical 15 minutes before paramedics arrived at the course in Danescourt Road, Tettenhall.
The multi-millionaire, who was a director at Wolves from 2006 to 2008, was taken to New Cross Hospital. Long-time friend and Wolves director John Gough today said: "He is out of intensive care and hopefully will be in a position to go home before too long."
Mr Gough said earlier that the life of Mr Threlfall had been saved by the actions of Mr Woodward, Mr Knowles and Mr Guest together with the skill of paramedics who worked on the patient for a further half an hour at the scene before his condition was sufficiently stabilised for him to be moved to hospital by ambulance.
Wolves have issued a statement last week sending their best wishes to Mr Threlfall, his wife Jill and children Jade and Nick.
Mr Threlfall started his business empire with a cigarette kiosk at Wolverhampton Market in 1975. He made his millions when he sold his chain of more than 1,200 off-licences and convenience stores to Tesco for £530m in 2002. By that time, the group had 16,000 employees and £1 billion annual turnover.
