Re: BREAKING NEWS … WOOLMER MAY HAVE BEEN MURDERED… GEO..
Wife rules out conspiracy in Woolmer’s death
Even as the West Indies police are investigating the cause of Pakistan cricket coach Bob Woolmer’s death, his wife has ruled out ‘any conspiracy’ and said the family had never received threats.
Woolmer, 58, died in his hotel room Sunday in Kingston, a day after former champions Pakistan lost to minnows Ireland and crashed out of the World Cup.
‘No I don’t see any conspiracy in his death. I am aware that his death is being viewed as a suspicious death,’ Woolmer’s wife Gill told a television channel from her South Africa home.
‘He had nothing to do with the match-fixing controversy and any such person being involved is highly unlikely. We never got any threats as far as I know,’ she told NDTV in an interview that will be telecast at 7.30 p.m. Wednesday.
Jamaica police officials said Tuesday night that they were now treating Woolmers’ death as ‘suspicious’.
Deputy Police Commissioner Mark Shields told a hastily arranged news conference at the Jamaica Pegasus Hotel Tuesday night that the police were treating Woolmer’s death as suspicious.
‘Having met with the pathologist, other medical personnel, and investigators, there is now sufficient information to continue a full investigation into the circumstances surrounding the death of Mr. Woolmer which we are now treating as ‘suspicious’,’ he said.
Gill also confirmed that Woolmer was writing two books - a fact that was disclosed by IANS Monday.
‘I am writing two books, one is called ‘Discovering Cricket’. It is about my experiences with cricket,’ Woolmer had told IANS at the Le Meridian hotel when he was here for the Champions Trophy in October last year.
Woolmer was to touch upon the match-fixing controversy also, and for this he sought - and got - details of the Hanside Cronje case from Delhi police commissioner K.K. Paul here in April 2005.
Woolmer was coach of the Cronje-led South African team that toured India in 2001. Cronje’s conversation with a bookie was tapped by Delhi Police while he was allegedly trying to fix a One-day International during that series.
Gill denied that Woolmer, who played 19 Tests and six one-day internationals for England in 1970s, was alcoholic.
‘He had Type 2 Diabetes. He was not prescribed any drugs for it. All that reports about the drinking are also rubbish. He was taking prescribed anti-inflammatory drugs and that’s it,’ she said.
Type 2 Diabetes is a cardio-vascular disease that could lead to blindness, and nerve and kidney damage.
She, however, admitted that her husband was under pressure due to Pakistan’s defeat by the West Indies and then Ireland, and was tired.
‘He didn’t say anything specifically but I could see him on the TV and I know him well enough to guess that he was under pressure. I could read the expression on his face,’ she said.
‘He shared his experiences with me all the time. He was very tired. All that cricket, living out of a suitcase, the time difference and the travelling was tiring.’
‘The Pakistani team’s poor performance affected him as any other big tournament that he lost as a coach (like to South Africa). He believed that what happened, happened, one has to move on,’ Gill said.
‘I didn’t speak to him after the (Ireland) match but he emailed me the following morning. He did mention that he was really depressed and could not believe how this could have happened. We discussed some personal issues apart from this.’
**She, however, said that Woolmer enjoyed a fine relationship with the Pakistani players. **
‘He had a very good relationship with the team. They had a lot of fun together and put in a lot of handwork too. All the boys are very friendly, they are nice boys and I enjoyed their company.’