THE family of engineer Matthew Sperring, 29, who collapsed and died last Monday, attended his funeral on Tuesday, with some flying in from abroad.

Mr Sperring collapsed after a suspected heart attack while he was working out in the gym at the Olympiad Leisure Centre at 7.15pm.

Despite the best efforts of Olympiad staff and ambulance paramedics, it was not possible to revive Mr Sperring, who lived at Bythebrook, Chippenham.

Dilwyn Richardson, 37, of Chippenham, was working out in the gym when Mr Sperring collapsed. He said: "I heard something drop and it must have been the weights. I caught something out of the corner of my eye and thought someone had fainted. Quite a few people were gathered round and then someone rang the ambulance.

"You certainly do not expect someone so young to suddenly die from something like that."

Mr Richardson said he had seen Mr Sperring in the gym at least once a week. "It was a bit of a shock. People have been a bit taken aback by it. It was an even bigger shock when we found out how old he was. It makes you think whether you are doing the right thing or not, but I suppose we don't know if he had a weak heart."

Mr Sperring's funeral was held at West Wiltshire Crematorium in Semington.

An inquest was opened and adjourned last Friday.