Two Indonesian fans die from SEA Games soccer final
Updated: 2011-11-22 15:46
(Xinhua/Agencies)
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JAKARTA - Two fans died in a stampede at the Southeast Asian Games football final in Jakarta, a report said on Tuesday.
The two men, wearing Indonesian red-and-white football team T-shirts were taken to hospital at 8:30 pm, around 90 minutes after the stampede broke out after a win on penalties for defending champions Malaysia against hosts Indonesia.
Local media reported that several other spectators had been taken to hospital, including a nine-year-old boy who had fallen into a coma, as tens of thousands of fans swarmed to the Gelora Bung Karno stadium for Monday night's final.
Hundreds of people were packed tight against ticket barriers as police closed the gates shortly before kickoff, with many fans inside forced to crouch in aisles and walkways.
Those in the stands endured a nerve-shredding night and eventual heartbreak as Malaysia won 4-3 on penalties with the game deadlocked at 1-1 after extra time.
Captain Baddrol Bakhtiar stroked home the winning spot kick to give the visitors gold with a 3-4 penalties victory, sparking jubilant scenes on the pitch and silencing the crowd who had hoped to see Indonesia claim its first Games football gold for two decades.
Indonesia missed two penalties, allowing Bakhtiar, who was the game's standout player, to steal the headlines with a ice cool spot kick into the bottom corner.
Indonesia topped the Games medal tally with 171 golds and a total medal haul of 454 putting them well ahead of second-placed Thailand on 105 first places.
The SEA Games, held once every two years, run until Tuesday and see 11 nations competing for hundreds of gold medals.