RUSSIAN REVOLT
Exclusive: Cuts at $20m centre as owner deals with probe
STAFF are being cut at a $20 million Gold Coast sports centre as its Russian backer is engulfed by an investigation into a fire that killed 64 at a Siberian mall he helped fund.
The centre boss disputes the extent of the cuts and says the Russian fire probe is unrelated.
A $20 million Gold Coast sports centre is cutting staff as its billionaire Russian owner deals with fallout from a catastrophic fire at a mall he is linked to in Siberia.
Employees at KDV Sport, Carrara, which opened 18 months ago, claim a number of staff – including full-timers plus maintenance crew – have left or been axed in recent weeks.
One senior staffer said the heads of the new centre’s golf pro shop and tennis program plus a project manager all departed recently.
It comes after a March 25 mall fire in Siberia killed 64 people. It is being probed by Russian authorities who claim fire alarms did not work among other safety breaches. KDV Sport founder Denis Shtengelov helped fund the mall construction and has said he had no role in its ongoing operational management.
His sister Julia, who runs KDV Sport, yesterday disputed the extent of the claimed cuts, saying one full-timer was made redundant and two fulltimers left “due to personal reasons”.
Roles and hours of casual staff were affected by Nerang-Broadbeach Road closures from March 26 to April 19 impacting the business, she said.
There would be no “adverse impacts” for KDV Sport, she said, adding: “The incident overseas is totally unrelated to KDV Sport.
“There are absolutely no plans to close. We remain open and continue to operate and develop the facility in line with our original business plan.”
At the time of the blaze, Mr Shtengelov – who lives between the Gold Coast and Russia – told foreign media he would not return home: “To come just to go to jail?
“I take it as a personal tragedy. But I would like to have the real perpetrators identified.”
Russian president Vladimir Putin visited the site 3000km east of Moscow and promised anyone responsible and found criminally negligent would be harshly punished.
In a statement to the Bulletin a month ago, Mr Shtengelov – understood to be on the Gold Coast – offered condolences to all affected and said he was working with authorities.
Multiple sources have told the Bulletin it was clear soon after the fatal fire cuts were coming at KDV Sports.
“Everyone has been on tenterhooks since,” one said.
Mr Shtengelov made his fortune with KDV Group, a Russian confectionary giant he founded in 1997 that produces 350 different cheap snack lines under 20 brand names. In 2017, Bloomberg reported him as Russia’s latest billionaire.
A Russian news site this week reported he had committed to pay three million roubles – or $64,200 – compensation for each of the fire victims.
That would amount to just over $4 million.
A former KDV Sports staffer claimed: “KDV was going well. But obviously it wasn’t making enough money and now there is no money to top it up and they are having to make cuts.
“It is out of their hands and they just have to roll with it. You can’t blame anyone or be upset – everyone just has to move forward.”
Another source said they believed a plan for accommodation on site was still being pursued.
“This is a hurdle but I think it will be all right. They still have the golf, the driving range, the tennis. It’s all still going, but it’s just on a skeleton crew.
“Maybe Denis will be able to pump money back in at some stage – it could all change tomorrow.”
One staff member said: “It is a great set up. I wish them all the best and hold no grudges.”
But the same staffer said the end was quick for some. “It was completely out of the blue. Everyone has been blindsided. I feel like I’ve been screwed over by Russia.”
At its glitzy launch in late 2016 Olympic swimmer Giaan Rooney proclaimed KDV Sports among the best of its kind in the world.
The opening was attended by centre ambassador and French extennis star Henri Leconte while Mayor Tom Tate said in his opening speech he believed it would see the Gold Coast produce “a lot more Bernard Tomics, Jason Days and Adam Scotts”.