Leicester City\u2019s charismatic Thai chairman was the subject of growing concerns on Sunday after a helicopter belonging to the billionaire crashed and burst into flames in the stadium carpark shortly after taking off from the club\u2019s pitch.<\/p>\n
There was no confirmation whether London-based Vichai Srivaddhanaprabha, who frequently flies to and from Leicester\u2019s home games by helicopter, was on board the aircraft which appeared to develop mechanical problems.<\/p>\n
The BBC\u2019s Southeast Asia correspondent tweeted that a \u201csource close to the family\u201d had confirmed he was on board, but there was no word from Leicester City or from Thai officials of King Power, Vichai\u2019s duty-free shopping empire.<\/p>\n
Images showed smoke rising from the fiery wreckage in the carpark at King Power Stadium \u2014 the scene of unbridled jubilation after Leicester\u2019s against-all-odds Premier League title victory in 2016.<\/p>\n
Freelance photographer Ryan Brown, who was covering Saturday\u2019s 1-1 draw with West Ham, told BBC Radio 5 Live that he saw the helicopter rise out of the stadium before it crashed.<\/p>\n
\u201cLiterally the engine stopped and I turned around, and it made a bit of a whirring noise. It turned silent, blades started spinning and then there was a big bang,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
He said he saw \u201ca huge fireball\u201d when he ran to the scene.<\/p>\n
None of the identities of the pilot or passengers was revealed, and there was also no information about whether anyone on the ground was injured.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe are assisting Leicestershire Police and the emergency services in dealing with a major incident at King Power Stadium,\u201d the club said in a statement.<\/p>\n
\u2018Heartbreaking\u2019
\nAs expressions of concern poured in from around the football world, England legend Gary Lineker, a former Leicester player and host of the BBC\u2019s Match of the Day, tweeted: \u201cThat was the most difficult @BBCMOTD I\u2019ve ever hosted\u2026 A terrible tragedy. Heartbreaking.\u201d<\/p>\n
Leicester footballers Jamie Vardy and Harry Maguire both tweeted praying hands emojis and West Ham defender Pablo Zabaleta, who also played in Saturday\u2019s game, tweeted: \u201cMy thoughts and prayers are with all those involved in the helicopter accident at Leicester City.\u201d<\/p>\n
Nualphan Lamsam or Madam Pang, an influential figure in Thai football who manages the national women\u2019s team, sent \u201cmoral support to Vichai and family\u201d in a post on Facebook.<\/p>\n
Vichai bought Leicester City in 2010 and became chairman the following February, pouring millions into the team and becoming a beloved figure in the club and the city \u2014 a feat not always achieved by the Premier League\u2019s foreign owners.<\/p>\n
\u201cThoughts and prayers with all \u2014 particularly owners who\u2019ve done so much for Club and our City,\u201d Leicester\u2019s mayor Peter Soulsby tweeted.<\/p>\n
Sky Sports said the helicopter took off from the pitch between 1930 and 1945 GMT but developed problems shortly afterwards with its tail rotor.<\/p>\n
The local ambulance service said it was alerted at 2138 GMT.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe sent a doctor, two paramedics in ambulance cars, a crewed ambulance and our Hazardous Area Response Team, with the first resource arriving within two minutes of the call,\u201d it tweeted.<\/p>\n
Air crash investigators were also examining the scene.<\/p>\n
Leicester\u2019s miracle
\nIt was under Vichai\u2019s ownership that Leicester crafted one of the biggest fairy-tales in English football history by winning the 2015\/16 Premier League, having started the season as 5,000-1 outsiders for the title.<\/p>\n
Vichai made major investments in the club after his purchase, returning them to England\u2019s Premier League from the second-tier Championship in 2014.<\/p>\n
They initially seemed outclassed by richer and more established clubs from London, Liverpool and Manchester, languishing at the very bottom the table for most of the 2014-15 season.<\/p>\n
The Foxes, as the team are nicknamed, then engineered what fans now fondly refer to as the \u201cGreat Escape\u201d, winning seven of their last nine matches.<\/p>\n
They ended up finishing 14th, securing themselves another season in Europe\u2019s richest league in 2015\/16.<\/p>\n
But not even their most devout fans could have imagined what happened next.<\/p>\n
Vardy, signed from non-league Fleetwood Town, scored in 11 consecutive matches, propelling the men in blue to a title without parallel in Premier League history.<\/p>\n
The success also qualified them for the first time for the lucrative Champions League, the pinnacle of European football played by the continent\u2019s most successful sides, including Barcelona and Real Madrid.<\/p>\n
There, Leicester City defied the odds yet again, winning their group before eventually losing their quarter-final 2-1 over two legs to Atletico Madrid.<\/p>\n
Egypt Independent<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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