Mum tells of her pain at news son had died
THE mother of a teenage boy who died while on a rugby tour in France told an inquest how she “screamed and cried” when she heard the news.
Harry Sykes, 16, was on tour in the south of France with his club Halifax Elite Rugby Academy when he died on September 5, 2018.
He had gone swimming at lunchtime with pals in Lake Cavayere, which is near the medieval town of Carcassonne.
The inquest at Bradford Coroner’s Court yesterday heard the popular teenager, of Clayton Heights, Bradford, who dreamed of turning professional, missed the coach back to the hotel and was later found drowned.
It was several hours before tour leaders realised the boy was missing.
His mother Natasha Burton told senior coroner Martin Fleming her son had been happy and excited as he prepared to join his team-mates on the coach which set off from Brighouse Sports and Social Club.
She said the trip along with more than 30 others was designed means it is likely to remain dry.
The weekend will also be warm and cloudy, with Friday, Saturday and Sunday also hitting highs of 17C. Friday evening will see some sunny intervals make an appearance, while Saturday and Sunday will be mostly cloudy but dry. as a ‘bonding session.’
Philip Simms, counsel to the inquest, asked her how on the evening of September 5 she became aware that something was wrong.
She replied that Lee Greenwood, who ran the academy along with his brother Gareth, phoned her at 7pm UK time to say they couldn’t find him.
Mr Simms said: “What did you do?” Mrs Burton replied: “I thought they had lost Harry’s stuff, not Harry.”
When her husband, Dan Burton, came home he rang Lee Greenwood who said they had contacted the police who were searching for him.
Mrs Burton said initially she thought he was missing and didn’t think he was in the water.
Later that night, at 11pm, she was informed that his body had been found.
Both Lee and Gareth visited her home over subsequent days and told her how sorry they were about what had happened.
The inquest heard that on September 27 Mrs Burton was contacted by a woman called Nicola Cohen who said there were “red flags” in her mind regarding what happened on that day and an alleged lack of supervision.
She added that she was told there had been another serious incident the previous year involving the academy when a “boy nearly drowned.”
Mr Burton, Harry’s stepfather, said he was a strong swimmer and that it was his dream to become a professional rugby player.
The hearing continues and is expected to last around two weeks.