AUTHOR OF LEICESTER’S FAIRYTALE

Thai tycoon Vichai took championship side to the pinnacle

Vichai Srivaddhanaprabha, the Thai billionaire owner of Leicester City, who died after his helicopter crashed outside the Premier League club’s stadium on Saturday, will be remembered as the author of one of football’s greatest fairytales.

Vichai, 60, endeared himself forever to Leicester fans when the unfashionable club broke the grip of English football’s traditional giants to win the Premier League in 2016 — the first topflight title in their history.

The title win put the city in England’s Midlands on the global sporting map and brought glory to generations of long-suffering fans.

The Foxes have been unable to reach the same meteoric heights since, finishing 12th in the following season and ninth in 201718.

But they are now firmly established in the Premier League unlike when Vichai took over in 2010 with the club languishing in the Championship, English football’s second tier.

Leicester were promoted to the top flight by winning the Championship in the 2013/14 season just two years before shocking the world by winning the Premier League.

Unlike many foreign owners of English clubs seen as having little connection to local fans, the bespectacled Thai was known for his unerring common touch.

Fans were treated to a free beer to celebrate his birthday ahead of a match against Newcastle in April this year.

Season-ticket prices have been frozen for the past four seasons, while Vichai also donated £2 million (RM10.7 million) to help build a local children’s hospital in the aftermath of the club’s title triumph.

The sight of him arriving and leaving from matches in his helicopter from the centre-circle of the pitch was common.

Sadly, that ritual was to end in tragedy as it was from there he boarded to take off after Saturday’s 1-1 draw with West Ham before the helicopter crashed in the car park directly outside the stadium.