Cricket pays tribute to Bob Woolmer
7.08, Mon Mar 19 2007

Cricket is mourning the loss of Pakistan coach and former England batsman Bob Woolmer who died suddenly in Jamaica aged 58.

Just hours after his team's shock defeat to minnows Ireland in the Cricket World Cup, Woolmer was found collapsed in his hotel room. He was rushed to hospital where he was pronounced dead.

Woolmer played 19 Test matches for England and enjoyed huge success as a coach for Warwickshire and South Africa, as well as Pakistan.

England and Wales Cricket Board chief executive David Collier described him as "one of the world's greatest coaches", adding "everyone at ECB extends our deepest sympathy to Bob's family - we have lost a great friend".

Current England captain Michael Vaughan said: "On behalf of the England cricket team we know there has been a sad loss to the world of cricket with the death of Bob Woolmer.

"We know how much he has had an impact on the world game, the English game and we know how greatly missed he's going to be."

Former Test umpire Dickie Bird, who knew Woolmer as a player and as a coach, said: "Bob was respected worldwide. He developed into the finest cricket coach in the world.

"He was a tremendous professional cricketer and was dedicated to the game. The world will miss him. He did so much for the game he was well liked and well respected."

ITV News

A very sad day for international cricket.

Black armbands will be worn by all participants as a mark of respect to a tough and gritty competitor.

R.I.P Bob Woolmer.

Jamaican police has confirmed the Channel 4 News report that Pakistan cricket coach Bob Woolmer was murdered.

Jamaican police spokesman Karl Anger gave this official statement in the early hours of this morning, British time. "The pathologist's report states that Mr Woolmer's death was due to asphyxia as a result of manual strangulation.

"In these circumstances the matter of Mr Woolmer's death is now being treated by the Jamaican police as a case of murder."

Woolmer, 58, was found unconscious by staff at the Pegasus Hotel in Kingston at around 10.45am on Sunday, the day after Pakistan's shock World Cup defeat to cricketing minnows Ireland.

It is understood the coach was found in the bathroom area. Despite numerous attempts to revive him on the way to hospital, he later died.

Yesterday lunch time, Channel 4 News learned from a well placed source that Woolmer had suffered a broken neck.

'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 at the time.'
Mark Shields, Jamaica police

Jamaica's deputy police commissioner Mark Shields said today police were ruling nothing out in their inquiries, including the possibility that more than one person had been involved in Woolmer's murder.

He said: "It would take some force, 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 at the time.

"It could be one or more people involved in this murder."

Mr Shields confirmed Woolmer had shown no signs of life when he was found in his hotel room and said there had been no signs of a struggle.

He said police had delayed announcing Woolmer had been murdered until the results of the pathologist's report was known. "In these particular circumstances we had to make sure because there were no visible external signs [of his murder]."

CH4News