TRIBUTES have been paid to a “gentle giant” who died suddenly over the weekend while out on his bike on a Suffolk road.

Lizzie Parry

TRIBUTES have been paid to a “gentle giant” who died suddenly over the weekend while out on his bike on a Suffolk road.

Fondly referring to “big Si,” villagers in Lower Somersham, near Ipswich, have been left shocked after hearing the news of Simon Crick's untimely death on Saturday morning.

The 33-year-old was complaining of chest pains when paramedics reached him on the country lane, between his home in Princes Gardens and where his parents live. It is believed he was out on his bike with a friend when he fell off, dying a short while after an ambulance crew arrived to treat him in Flowton Road.

A spokeswoman for the East of England Ambulance Service said Mr Crick suffered “a traumatic cardiac arrest”.

One local resident, Steve Cotterell, paid tribute to Mr Crick, describing him as a “gentle giant”.

“I can't believe this has happened to such a lovely gentle giant. Our village is in shock once more through the loss of another young life.”

Floral tributes left in memory of Mr Crick yesterday marked the spot where he died. The air ambulance landed in a field nearby but attempts to revive Mr Crick were unsuccessful and he was declared dead at the scene.

The ambulance spokeswoman said: “We had reports of an unconscious man. It was unclear at the time whether he had been involved in a road traffic accident or fallen off his bike. He suffered a traumatic cardiac arrest.”

Flowton Road was closed off on Saturday morning while police officers tried to establish the circumstances which led to the 33-year-old's sudden death.

Police have recorded the incident as a sudden death and referred the case to the coroner.

Mr Crick's family were too upset to pay tributes when contacted by the EADT.