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UK Athletics Fined £350,000 Following Paralympian’s Fatal Training Accident
LONDON – UK Athletics has been fined £350,000 ($471,000) after admitting corporate manslaughter in connection with the tragic death of Paralympian Abdullah Hayayei. The 36-year-old athlete from the United Arab Emirates was fatally injured when a practice throwing cage collapsed on him during training at Newham Leisure Centre in East London on July 11, 2017.
At a hearing held Tuesday at Central London Criminal Court, Judge Richard Marks described Hayayei’s death as “tragic, untimely and wholly avoidable.” The judge emphasized that the incident was foreseeable, citing a prior collapse involving identical equipment.
Keith Davies, 79, who served as head of sport for the 2017 World Para Athletics Championships in London, pleaded guilty to a health and safety charge. As part of his sentence, Davies – a retired physical education teacher – was ordered to complete 175 hours of unpaid work. Judge Marks noted that Davies either knew or should have known about the equipment’s hazards.
The incident involved a 440-pound (200-kilogram) metal and wire cage designed to shield spectators from stray throws during shot put and javelin practice. Hayayei, who had competed at the 2016 Rio Paralympics, where he placed sixth in javelin and seventh in shot put, was struck on the head by a metal pole when the cage fell.
Judge Marks concluded, “This was an accident which sooner or later was waiting to happen,” underscoring the preventable nature of this tragic event.