UK Athletics Admits Corporate Manslaughter in Death of Paralympian
Former UAE athlete Abdullah Hayayei died during training; senior official also guilty of health and safety breach
- UK Athletics pleads guilty to corporate manslaughter over Hayayei’s death.
- Keith Davies admits health and safety violation; sentencing set for June.
- Hayayei, UAE Paralympian, was training for world championships at the time.
UK Athletics has pleaded guilty to the corporate manslaughter of Paralympian Abdullah Hayayei, who died aged 36 when a metal cage fell on him during training at Newham Leisure Centre, London, in July 2017.
Keith Davies, 78, head of sport for the 2017 World Para-athletics Championships, also admitted to a health and safety offence, having previously denied gross negligence manslaughter.
Prosecutors have requested a two-day sentencing hearing in early June. Davies remains on bail, with conditions to liaise with the Probation Service for a pre-sentence report.
Hayayei, a father of five from the United Arab Emirates, was preparing for the F34 shot put, discus, and javelin events at the World Para-athletics Championships. He had made his Paralympic debut at Rio 2016, finishing sixth in javelin and seventh in shot put, and had also competed at the 2015 World Championships in Doha, Qatar.
A moment of silence was held in Hayayei’s honor during the opening ceremony at London Stadium.
