Ana Clara Benevides, 23, tragically died from a suspected cardiac arrest from dehydration and intense humidity as temperatures exceeded 100 degrees Fahrenheit in Rio de Janeiro last Friday, causing fans to faint and suffer ‘second-degree burns’ in the sweltering heat.
Her death comes four months after a Chiefs super fan, whose favorite player was Travis, died at the club’s training camp in July.
‘Travis has been there to console Taylor, as he can sadly relate to the experience,’ a source close to the Grammy award-winning singer told DailyMail.com exclusively.
‘In July, a diehard Chiefs fan died at the team’s training camp practice. This really shook some of his teammates up.
‘Travis will not let Taylor get herself down as it is the nature of the beast. When you are performing for 70,000 people per show, sadly, such things can happen.’
After canceling two shows following Ana’s death, Taylor returned to the stage on Sunday night and delivered an emotional tribute, dedicating Bigger Than The Whole Sky – a ballad about grieving over a premature loss – to the young woman.
‘Goodbye, goodbye, goodbye / You were bigger than the whole sky / You were ore than just a short time,’ she sang. ‘I’m never gonna meet / What could’ve been, would’ve been / What should’ve been you / What could’ve been, would’ve been you.’
Ana, a psychology student, had traveled from Rondonópolis – a three-and-a-half-hour flight from Rio – to see her idol at the Nilton Santos Olympic stadium.
She fainted in the front row and was given CPR before being transported to a hospital, where she died of a cardiac arrest.
Fans have claimed they were banned from bringing water into the stadium on Friday.
Taylor, who appeared to be struggling to breathe during the set, was filmed urging staff to hand out bottles.
‘There’s people that need water right here, maybe 30, 35, 40 feet back,’ she can be seen saying in a video circulating online.
‘So whoever is in charge of giving them that, just make sure that happens. Can I get a signal that you know where they are?’
More than 1,000 people reportedly fainted during the set, according to firefighters.
Local reports claimed bringing water into the stadium was prohibited, and fans could expect to pay R$8 ($1.60) for a small 305ml cup of water.
The Public Prosecutor’s Officer and consumer protection agencies have since launched investigations into possible neglect on the behalf of organizers T4F.
Taylor is playing 151 shows across five continents as part of her mammoth Eras Tour.
Although Travis was not able to be there in person to support her this weekend, he spent more than 30 minutes on the phone in an emotional call on Sunday night.
Pictures obtained exclusively by DailyMail.com showed the sportsman arriving at the team hotel looking somber and downcast.
Travis and his team had to face the death of Chiefs super fan Jessica Tangen, who died aged 43, from a cardiac-related issue at their training camp in July.
Her nine-year-old daughter, Kyla, said her mother’s favorite player was Travis and that she never missed an episode of the tight end’s podcast, New Heights.
Head coach Andy Reid honored the fallen football fan during a press conference.
‘The death of mom there to the kids, it’s a terrible thing that happened,’ he told reporters. ‘We’ve obviously reached out to them, it will stay that way and continue to support them by contact.’
The football league also paid respects to the late Chiefs fan on Twitter.
Alongside a photo of Jessica and her family, they wrote, the statement read: ‘Jessica’s family shared that she was a lifelong Chiefs fan and loved cheering for the team. Please join us in lifting up the grieving family with your thoughts and prayers.’
‘A very sad tragedy,’ the statement read along with three broken heart emojis.
Taylor released a statement of her own following the death of her beloved fan on Friday.
In a handwritten note on Instagram, she wrote: ‘I can’t believe I’m writing these words but it is with a shattered heart that I say we lost a fan earlier tonight before my show. I can’t even tell you how devastated I am by this. There’s very little information I have other than the fact that she was so incredibly beautiful and far too young.’
She added: ‘I’m not going to be able to speak about this from stage because I feel overwhelmed by grief when I even try to talk about it. I want to say now I feel this loss deeply and my broken heart goes out to her family and friends. This is the last thing I ever thought would happen when we decided to bring this tour to Brazil.’
She also shared a note to let fans know that her show was being postponed, insisting ‘the safety and well-being of my fans, fellow performers and crew has to and always will come first.’
Taylor, who is set to fly home to spend Thanksgiving with her family and Travis’, has been dating the football legend since September.
He recently gushed about her in a new interview with the Wall Street Journal magazine, claiming it has been ‘f***ing mind-blowing’ seeing how smart his girlfriend is.
‘Being around her, seeing how smart Taylor is, has been f***ing mind-blowing. I’m learning every day,’ he said.
Travis also admitted that Taylor’s fame has inevitably had an impact on his own life.
‘Obviously I’ve never dated anyone with that kind of aura about them…. I’ve never dealt with it,’ he explained. ‘But at the same time, I’m not running away from any of it.
‘The scrutiny she gets, how much she has a magnifying glass on her, every single day, paparazzi outside her house, outside every restaurant she goes to, after every flight she gets off, and she’s just living, enjoying life. When she acts like that I better not be the one acting all strange.’
He continued: ‘Everybody knows I’m a family guy. Her team is her family. Her family does a lot of stuff in terms of the tour, the marketing, being around, so I think she has a lot of those values as well, which is right up my alley.’
