UK Athletics and a former sports official have been charged with manslaughter over the death of a Paralympian who was hit on the head by a metal pole from the throwing cage during training in 2017.
Abdullah Hayayei, 36, who represented the United Arab Emirates, was injured at Newham Leisure Centre in East London on July 11, 2017. He was pronounced dead at the scene.
On Wednesday, police and the Crown Prosecution Service said that Keith Davies, 77, who was head of sport for the 2017 World Paralympic Athletics Championships, had been charged with gross negligence manslaughter and a health and safety offence.
UK Athletics Limited, the national governing body for athletics, has also been charged with corporate manslaughter and a health and safety offence. Athletics and Mr Davies are due to appear at Westminster Magistrates' Court on January 31.
Mr Hayayei represented the UAE in the F34 class javelin and shot put at the 2016 Rio Paralympic Games and was training for the World Para Athletics Championships at the time of his death.
Mr Hayayei trained with the Armed Forces as a serviceman in 2001. He fought back from severe injuries suffered during an accident at that time that resulted in severe nerve damage and a disability he then had until his death.
Mr Hayayei continued in the Armed Forces after he recovered and became an athlete, going on to represent his country.
Teammate Mohammed Al Hammadi won the UAE’s first medals – a silver and bronze – at the World Para Athletics Championships dedicated the medals to Mr Hayayei and gave them to his children.
Paying tribute to him at the time of his funeral, his elder sister Mariam Hayayei described him as a kind, helpful and fun person who took care of his mother after his father died in 1983.
“He was only three years old when our father passed away and when he became older, he took the responsibility of our mother and she relied on him for everything – he was her favourite son,” said Ms Hayayei. “Playing sports was one of the main things that encouraged him to progress and improve, as he found passion in it, was a helping hand to all his colleagues and managed to obtain many medals and trophies.”
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A MINECRAFT MOVIE
Director: Jared Hess
Starring: Jack Black, Jennifer Coolidge, Jason Momoa
Rating: 3/5
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
The smuggler
Eldarir had arrived at JFK in January 2020 with three suitcases, containing goods he valued at $300, when he was directed to a search area.
Officers found 41 gold artefacts among the bags, including amulets from a funerary set which prepared the deceased for the afterlife.
Also found was a cartouche of a Ptolemaic king on a relief that was originally part of a royal building or temple.
The largest single group of items found in Eldarir’s cases were 400 shabtis, or figurines.
Khouli conviction
Khouli smuggled items into the US by making false declarations to customs about the country of origin and value of the items.
According to Immigration and Customs Enforcement, he provided “false provenances which stated that [two] Egyptian antiquities were part of a collection assembled by Khouli's father in Israel in the 1960s” when in fact “Khouli acquired the Egyptian antiquities from other dealers”.
He was sentenced to one year of probation, six months of home confinement and 200 hours of community service in 2012 after admitting buying and smuggling Egyptian antiquities, including coffins, funerary boats and limestone figures.
For sale
A number of other items said to come from the collection of Ezeldeen Taha Eldarir are currently or recently for sale.
Their provenance is described in near identical terms as the British Museum shabti: bought from Salahaddin Sirmali, "authenticated and appraised" by Hossen Rashed, then imported to the US in 1948.
- An Egyptian Mummy mask dating from 700BC-30BC, is on offer for £11,807 ($15,275) online by a seller in Mexico
- A coffin lid dating back to 664BC-332BC was offered for sale by a Colorado-based art dealer, with a starting price of $65,000
- A shabti that was on sale through a Chicago-based coin dealer, dating from 1567BC-1085BC, is up for $1,950
