A man adds a Leicester City scarf to floral tributes lined up
outside Leicester City Football Club’s King Power Stadium in
Leicester, eastern England, on October 28, 2018 after a helicopter
belonging to the club’s Thai chairman Vichai Srivaddhanaprabha
crashed outside the stadium the night before. – Leicester City’s
charismatic Thai chairman was the subject of growing concerns on
October 28 after a helicopter belonging to the billionaire crashed
and burst into flames in the stadium carpark shortly after taking
off from the club’s pitch following the match against West Ham
United on October 27. There was no confirmation whether
London-based Vichai Srivaddhanaprabha, who frequently flies to and
from Leicester’s home games by helicopter, was on board the
aircraft which appeared to develop mechanical problems. (Photo by
Ben STANSALL / AFP)
Fears grew for Leicester City’s charismatic Thai chairman on
Sunday after a helicopter belonging to the billionaire crashed and
burst into flames in the football stadium car park moments after
taking off from the club’s pitch.
There was no confirmation whether London-based Vichai
Srivaddhanaprabha, who frequently flies to and from Leicester’s
home games by helicopter, was on board the aircraft which appeared
to develop mechanical problems.
The BBC quoted a source and a witness as saying Vichai, and a
group of other people boarded the blue helicopter from the
centre-circle in the middle of the pitch once the stadium emptied
after Saturday’s 1-1 draw with West Ham.
Leicester City said it only it was assisting police with a
“major incident” and officials at King Power, Vichai’s duty-free
shopping empire, were not commenting.
Images showed orange balls of flame engulfing the wreckage in
the carpark at King Power Stadium — the scene of unbridled
jubilation after Leicester’s against-all-odds Premier League title
victory in 2016.
“Literally the engine stopped and I turned around, and it made a
bit of a whirring noise. It turned silent, blades started spinning
and then there was a big bang,” freelance photographer Ryan Brown
told BBC Radio 5 Live.
None of the identities of the pilot or passengers was revealed,
and there was also no information about whether anyone on the
ground was injured.
“We are assisting Leicestershire Police and the emergency
services in dealing with a major incident at King Power Stadium,”
the club said in a statement.
“I can’t get to sleep over it, because it means a lot to me, he
did a lot for the club,” Leicester City supporter Anti Patel told
AFP.
– Prayers and disbelief –
Expressions of concern poured in from around the football world, in
Britain and beyond.
England legend Gary Lineker, a former Leicester player and host
of the BBC’s Match of the Day, tweeted: “That was the most
difficult @BBCMOTD I’ve ever hosted… A terrible tragedy.
Heartbreaking.”
Leicester stars Jamie Vardy and Harry Maguire both tweeted
emojis of hands held up in prayer.
Nualphan Lamsam, also known as Madam Pang, an influential figure
in Thai football who manages the national women’s team, sent “moral
support to Vichai and family” in a post on Facebook.
And ordinary fans in central Bangkok said Vichai helped develop
Thailand’s football as well, bringing the Southeast Asian country
greater recognition in the sports world.
“He is an important person who has raised the bar of Thai
football further,” Apichart Jitratkavee, a Leicester fan in the
Thai capital, told AFP.
“There were projects by Leicester City to select Thai teenagers
to train in the club’s academy. They will have a chance to serve
the nation in the future.”
Vichai bought Leicester City in 2010 and moved to chairman the
following February, pouring millions into the team and becoming a
beloved figure in the club and the city — a feat not always
achieved by the Premier League’s foreign owners.
The local ambulance service said it was alerted of an accident
about 75 minutes after the final whistle blew.
Leicestershire police said Sunday the Air Accidents
Investigation Board, which probes civil air aircraft accidents,
would lead the investigation.
– Miracle season –
It was under Vichai’s ownership that Leicester crafted one of the
biggest fairy-tales in English football history by winning the
2015/16 Premier League, having started the season as 5,000-1
outsiders for the title.
Vichai’s major investments in the club helped return them to
England’s Premier League from the second-tier Championship in
2014.
They initially seemed outclassed by richer and more established
clubs from London, Liverpool and Manchester, languishing at the
very bottom of the table for most of the 2014/15 season.
The Foxes, as the team are nicknamed, then engineered what fans
now fondly refer to as the “Great Escape”, winning seven of their
last nine matches.
They ended up finishing 14th, securing another season in
Europe’s richest league in 2015/16.
But not even their most devout fans could have imagined what
happened next.
Vardy, signed from non-league Fleetwood Town, scored in 11
consecutive matches, propelling the men in blue to a title without
parallel in Premier League history.
The success also qualified them for the first time for the
lucrative Champions League, the pinnacle of European football
played by the continent’s most successful sides, including
Barcelona and Real Madrid.
There, Leicester City defied the odds yet again, winning their
group before eventually losing their quarter-final 2-1 over two
legs to Atletico Madrid.
AFP.
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