Qatar World Cup chief executive Nasser Al-Khater has crassly attempted to brush away questions about a migrant worker who died at Saudi Arabia's training base.
The tragic news was confirmed on Wednesday that a worker had passed away while performing repairs on Saudi's training facility at the Sealine Beach resort. The tournament has been met with a lot of criticism since it was revealed that thousands of migrant workers had passed away in the building of stadiums. .
This became a theme throughout the build-up to the competition, before the worker died after the start of the tournament. According to a report from The Athletic, a Filipino man thought to be called Alex, was involved in a forklift accident at the five-star resort where the Saudis had set up base during the group stages.
It is suggested that the worker, who was rumoured to be in his early 40s, slipped off of a ramp while walking alongside the forklift and fell head-first against concrete. A medical helicopter was called in order to give him treatment but the victim unfortunately died on site.
However, rather than focus on the sad passing of the individual, Al-Khater attempted to deflect focus back to the tournament, which FIFA president Gianni Infantino recently described as "the best ever".
When asked about the incident, Al-Khater told the BBC : "It has been a successful World Cup and this is something you want to talk about. Death is a natural part of life, whether it’s at work or in your sleep. A worker died, our condolences go to his family. However, it is strange that this is something you want to focus on as your first question."
The Guardian reported before the World Cup that around 6,500 migrant workers had died when building the stadiums, with seven arenas made specifically for the competition. Stadium 974 is set to be demolished after the final on December 18, after it was primarily made by shipping containers.
Meanwhile, a Qatari government official said: "If the investigation concludes that safety protocols were not followed, the company will be subject to legal action and severe financial penalties. Compensation is paid through the Workers' Support and Insurance Fund when a worker has been injured or passed away due to a work-related incident, or when an employer is unable to pay salaries."
A FIFA official said: "FIFA is deeply saddened by this tragedy and our thoughts and sympathies are with the worker's family. As soon as FIFA was made aware of the accident, we contacted the local authorities to request more details. FIFA will be in a position to comment further once the relevant processes in relation to the worker’s passing have been completed."
