Cricket coach's death due to 'manual strangulation'Associated Press


KINGSTON, Jamaica -- Authorities said Thursday that Pakistan's cricket coach was strangled in his hotel room the day after his team suffered a humiliating World Cup loss -- a murder that has shocked the proper world of cricket.

Bob Woolmer, 58, was found unconscious in his blood- and vomit-splattered hotel room in Jamaica on Sunday after his team's defeat to Ireland on St. Patrick's Day sealed Pakistan's ouster from the tournament. He was later declared dead at a hospital.

Police commissioner Lucius Thomas said in a statement that the pathologist report found Woolmer's death was due to "asphyxia as a result of manual strangulation." Police said they were reviewing security cameras at the Jamaica Pegasus Hotel and urging witnesses to come forward.

"It is our belief that those associated with or having access with Mr. Woolmer may have vital information to assist this inquiry," Thomas said in the statement.

There was no evidence of forced entry, police said.

Mark Shields, the deputy police commissioner, said police were also investigating if more than one person could have been involved.

"Because Bob was a large man, it would have taken some significant force to subdue him, but of course at this stage we do not know how many people were in the room," he told a news conference Thursday night. "It could be one or more people involved in this murder."

Shields declined to comment when asked about local media reports describing the condition of Woolmer's body.

"There are some issues surrounding marks on his body, but for the moment I would rather we stick to the cause of death, which is asphyxia," he said.

No arrests have been made and there were no suspects in the case, police said.

Team spokesman Pervez Jamil Mir said the players were shocked by the news Woolmer had been killed.

"I've spoken to the chairman and he's totally devastated. He can't believe it. He's very, very distressed. The team is distressed. Everybody is absolutely in a state of shock," he said.

Earlier in the day, Pakistan's cricketers were fingerprinted and interviewed by police and then allowed to travel across the island to Montego Bay. Mir said Jamaican police were not preventing the team from leaving the country and they would depart for Pakistan on Saturday.

Assistant police commissioner Les Green said the team was fingerprinted as part of standard procedure "to eliminate persons from fingerprints which would be found in the room."

"After a thorough investigation, fingerprints not belonging to Mr. Woolmer were found in the room," he told The Associated Press.

Woolmer's death had prompted much speculation among followers of cricket, a sport that breaks for tea and makes baseball seem fast-paced but generates tremendous passion in Britain and its former colonies.

An outspoken Pakistani player speculated that gambling interests had it in for Woolmer. The coach's widow said he was depressed about losing the game but would never have committed suicide. She said an irate fan might have killed her husband.

"Some of the cricketing fraternity, fans, are extremely volatile and passionate about the game and what happens in the game," Gill Woolmer said Thursday in an interview from South Africa with Britain's Sky TV. "So I suppose there is always the possibility."

Gill Woolmer said her husband had not recently mentioned anything about match fixing. He had been South Africa's coach in the 1990s when the team's captain, Hansie Cronje, admitted taking money to fix matches and was banned for life. Woolmer was never implicated.

The head of the International Cricket Council's anti-corruption unit will investigate if match fixing had played a role in Woolmer's death, ICC chief executive Malcolm Speed said.

Woolmer's death left the Pakistan national team in tatters and tears.

Team captain Inzamam-ul-Haq announced his resignation and retirement from one-day cricket after Woolmer's death and then led Pakistan to an emotional victory Wednesday against Zimbabwe. A fan at the match hoisted a sign saying: "Do it for Bob."

The burly, bearded team captain left the field weeping after the victory he dedicated to Woolmer.

"He's not in this world now and every Pakistani and every cricket lover is sad," he said.

Woolmer, who is British, was born in India, played for England and recently split his time between Pakistan and South Africa. He is being accorded hero status in Pakistan after his death. Pakistani President Gen. Pervez Musharraf said he would be awarded the Sitara-e-Imtiaz, or Star of Excellence, for his contribution to sport.

Copyright 2007 by The Associated Press

Are you saying that someone should kill Isiah Thomas? Interesting thought.

...

Posted by NYKresurrection:

No, i'm saying most of you would like to kill him !!! I love my knicks, probably more than most of you guys, but at the end of the day, its just a game !! I was disappointed when Zeke traded KVH !!! However, i would never conduct myself in the ridiculous manor of some of the posters here claiming to hate the man for his moves or calling the players names because they lost a GAME !!!

I think you're being overdramatic, just a tad, no?

It's not like TrueBlue is current camped out outside Isiah's bedroom window, planning for an 11:37 AM assination attempt, while Isles routes Isiah's current location through TrueBlue's PDA with GPS!

Oops, you weren't supposed to know about that.

Hey, he compared our status as fans to an actual murder. You have to assume he's actually retarted to post something like this, so he got an insane and sarcastic response.

ooooooo hissssssssss

Posted by arkrud:

Not everybody deserve to be killed
Some kick in the butt will be nice zo...

Funny you say that. I was watching the Portland game with my cousin and he said that Curry needs to be physically challenged by someone on that team. A sort of "close meeting" session. I really think that is his biggest problem. He needs a Charles Oakley type guy to get in his face. Say on his ass. I thought Malik was going to be that type of guy but I guess not. Then I thought maybe Cato too but he sounds like he babies Curry too. He needs to show that he has a pair. Too much of this gentle giant ****.

Poor Taste in my opinion

this is still better than how our players react after a loss-- like they are victims of injuries or bad officiating or some nonsense. they just dip their head and sulk and come back the next day doing the same things only hoping 'things will go their way this time'