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AFCON: Three knockout games at Olembe Stadium moved after eight people killed in crush


The next three Africa Cup of Nations knockout games due to be played at the Olembe Stadium in Yaounde, Cameroon will be moved to the Ahmadou Ahidjo Stadium after a crush outside the ground on Monday killed at least eight people and injured dozens more.

Two quarter-final games on January 30 and the semi-final on February 2 were scheduled to take place at the Olembe Stadium but have been moved across the city.

The AFCON organising committee has said they need assurance that “appropriate and adequate interventions and measures have been implemented” to make sure that a similar incident will not happen again.

No games will take place at the Olembe Stadium until the full report into the fatal incident has been sent to the Confederation of African Football and the local organising committee. The venue is also scheduled to host the showpiece final on February 6.

On Tuesday, CAF president Patrice Motsepe called for an immediate investigation into the disaster, which he said was caused by “inexplicable reasons”.

The tragedy occurred on Monday as fans struggled to get access to a match between the hosts and Comoros in Yaounde.

At an emergency press conference on Tuesday, Motsepe said that “failures” were to blame for the disaster.

“There were deficiencies. Clearly, there were failures. There were weaknesses. There were things that should have been foreseen.

“You take preventative measures, that if certain things happen those will ameliorate the circumstances which will lead to serious injuries and even loss of life.”

Motsepe did, however, say he remains “happy” with the safety measures that were in place ahead of the fixture.

“I am involved in so many ventures worldwide,” he added.

“My duty is always to not just take responsible steps but also I am more inclined to be as conservative as possible to put measures in place that minimises the loss of life.

“So I’m happy and pleased with the measures that are in place, I’m extremely disappointed and sad and hurt with what has happened (on Monday).

“Everything possible is going to be done to make sure that doesn’t happen again.”

The Olembe Stadium has a capacity of 60,000 but was not meant to be more than 80 per cent full because of COVID-19 restrictions. Motsepe said that capacities were unlikely to be reduced further as a result of the incident.

CAF have said they are “investigating the situation” and in “constant communication” with the Cameroonian government and the local organising committee.

(Photo: DANIEL BELOUMOU OLOMO/AFP via Getty Images)





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