Safety concerns raised in Qatar
Stadium worker died after catwalk failed, safety line snapped
An investigation into why a British man fell to his death on a building site for the 2022 Qatar soccer World Cup has raised concerns about stadium roof safety.
World Cup organizers on Thursday released partial findings of an assessment of the accident at the Khalifa International Stadium, but said the full report cannot be released while local authorities continue their investigation. It is one of two work-related deaths detailed in Qatar’s latest welfare report on preparations for the 2022 soccer tournament.
The 40-year-old British man fell 39 meters in January after one end of the roof catwalk he was installing dropped and a safety rope snapped.
“During the course of the investigation, the team had raised concerns with the method of installation of the raised catwalk system,” the report from Qatar’s World Cup organizers stated. “This required further investigation regarding the method itself and the supervision skills of the specialist contractor staff.”
It has led to “corrective and preventative actions” being implemented by the contractor, a joint venture between Belgian and Qatari firms, the report said.
“These included a review of all working-at-height activities across all SC projects, an enhanced process when reviewing specialist activities within construction sites, and a detailed review of all roof and gantry designs,” the Supreme Committee overseeing stadium projects added.
The British man is the only European working on Qatar stadiums to have died in a country relying on a low-paid migrant workforce from south Asia to prepare for the first World Cup in the Middle East.
SAIEF MOVE: Midfielder Kenny Saief has been given permission by FIFA to change his national team affiliation to the United States from Israel.
A 23-year-old from Panama City, Fla., Saief played for Israel’s under-19 and under-21 teams.
Saeif is on the U.S.’s 40-man preliminary roster for next month’s CONCACAF Gold Cup. The 23-man final roster is to be announced Sunday.
CHINA: The nation will effectively double the cost for its clubs to buy foreign soccer players in a move aimed at slowing the influx of overseas stars and encouraging homegrown talent.
The new policy could potentially derail proposed deals from Chinese clubs to acquire English Premier League stars such as Wayne Rooney and Diego Costa. Cristiano Ronaldo’s agent said in December that the Portuguese forward turned down an overture from a Chinese club for a transfer worth hundreds of millions of euros.