Luzhniki Disaster

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The Luzhniki disaster was a deadly human crush that took place at Lenin stadium (now known as Luzhniki stadium) in Moscow, Russia during the UEFA Cup match between FC Spartak Moscow and HFC Haarlem on October 20, 1982. The official death toll to this day is 66, although many claim it to be as high as 340.

1 The disaster
2 Aftermath
3 References
4 External links

[edit] The disaster

October 20, 1982 in Moscow was a cold, windy and snowy day, and the number of tickets sold for the match was relatively low, as a result, only the East Stand was open for spectators, and for security reasons only one exit from the stand was left open. Minutes before the final whistle when FC Spartak was leading 1-0, the spectators began to leave the stadium through this only exit. Then during the injury time, FC Spartak scored its second goal (Sergey Shvetsov, who scored, later said: "It would be better if I had not scored it!"), and some fans who had previously left the stand turned back to return to the stadium. The returning fans collided with those who were leaving the stadium. Militsiya guards would not allow those leaving to change course and return to the stadium. A stampede ensued in which many people died or were injured. The official number of dead was 66, although many people including victims' relatives claim this number to be significantly higher, as many as 340.

Sixteen year old Spartak Moscow fan Andrei Chesnokov, who was to become a professional tennis player, was present at the match: "Near the end of the match, when the 2-0 goal was scored, it went wrong. On the slippery stairs there were crashes; everybody fell over everybody. It was like a domino-effect. You couldn't get away, the steel banisters twisted under the weight of the people. They were just crushed to death. I also got trapped, but I managed to escape by jumping over the banister. I could get to safety through a row of bodies. Most were dead but some put their hands out to me to be saved, but they were stuck under the pile of corpses. I managed to get one boy out and brought him to an ambulance. But they couldn't do anything for him, he was dead. Downstairs I saw rows of bodies. I alone saw more than a hundred that night." (Source:Sportweek)

[edit] Aftermath

The only information about the disaster in the Soviet media was a short article that appeared in the newspaper Vechernyaya Moskva the next day. It said: Yesterday in Luzhniki after the football match an accident occurred. There are some injured among the spectators. Soviet officials claimed the fans themselves to be responsible. The relatives of the victims were allowed to bury them only after thirteen days. Then on February 8, 1983 a trial was held, but the only man found guilty was the commandant of the stadium, Panchikhin, who had been working there for only two and a half months before the disaster and was sentenced to 18 months of corrective labour. The governing body of the stadium was tried separately but was not convicted. The actions of Militsiya were not examined at all despite the testimony of witnesses. For several years following the tragedy, matches were not held at Luzhniki at the end of October in order to prevent relatives of victims from laying flowers there. It wasn't until a 1989 issue of the newspaper Sovetskiy Sport that the disaster was talked about openly. The Haarlem players didn't even know anything of the tragedy at the time it was happening, and only found out about it seven years later. A monument has been erected at the site of the tragedy.

On October 20, 2007 (the 25th anniversary) a Memorial Match was played between the former players of FC Spartak Moscow and HFC Haarlem for the benefit of the victims of the tragedy. Andrei Chesnokov is an honorary member of the committee that organized the benefit. The Memorial Match ended in a 2-2 draw.

The stadium has now been awarded a 5-Star rating by UEFA. It has hosted the 2008 Champions League Final.