Relative of U.S. coach killed in Beijing attack

updated 12:36 a.m. ET Aug. 10, 2008

BEIJING - The fatal stabbing of the father of a former Olympian at a Beijing landmark cast a sad shadow over the first full day of Olympic competition Saturday, just hours after China’s jubilant opening of the Summer Games.

Todd and Barbara Bachman of Lakeville, Minn. — parents of 2004 volleyball Olympian Elisabeth “Wiz” Bachman and in-laws of U.S. men’s volleyball coach Hugh McCutcheon — were attacked by a Chinese man while visiting the 13th-century Drum Tower.

The assailant, Tang Yongming, 47, leapt to his death from a 130-foot high balcony on the Drum Tower, just five miles from the main Olympics site, the official Xinhua News Agency reported.

The U.S. Olympic Committee confirmed Bachman died from knife wounds and that Barbara Bachman suffered life-threatening lacerations and stab wounds. She and their Chinese tour guide, who was also injured in the attack, were being treated in a Beijing hospital.

Mrs. Bachman underwent eight hours of surgery and was in critical but stable condition, the committee said, adding that McCutcheon would “not be on the bench today” for the U.S. men’s volleyball team’s opening game against Venezuela.

Elisabeth Bachman was with them at the time of the attack, but uninjured. Her father was chief executive officer for Bachman’s Inc., a home-and-garden center based in Minneapolis.

Two of Todd and Barbara Bachman’s other adult daughters were flying to China to be with their mother and Elisabeth, Dale Bachman, Todd’s second counsin, said at a news conference in Minneapolis.

“The next 24 hours will be critical,” he said.

Minnesota Star-Tribune Todd Bachman

According to Dale Bachman, Todd Bachman was walking a few steps behind his wife and daughter at a Beijing tourist site when he was attacked by a knife-wielding stranger. Barbara Bachman heard the commotion and turned to help her husband.

“That’s when she was attacked,” Dale Bachman said. “To me, that was a strong indication of her love. She is a fabulous person.”

The midday attack sent shock waves through the games precinct after the Olympics’ spectacular opening ceremony had set an ebullient tone. President Bush, in the Chinese capital for the games, expressed sadness while American athletes and Olympics officials reacted with disbelief.

There was no indication that the assailant knew that his victims had any connection to the games. “For all intents, it appears to be a random attack by a deranged man,” an American member of the International Olympic Committee, Jim Easton, told The Associated Press. “The only thing we’ve heard is they were not identifiable except for a small volleyball pin which would probably be invisible to a guy.”

Olympic community stunned
Easton said the attack stunned the Olympic community.

“It’s certainly a down day, certainly for the U.S. people,” he said. “Here it is supposed to be a great time of happiness and peace and all that. That’s what we work hard for, then for one person to be able to put a dark cloud on that.”

The U.S. women’s indoor volleyball team heard about the killing of their former teammate’s father before they took on Japan in a match Saturday. After their victory, player Logan Tom was obviously shaken.

“God, we all love Wiz,” she said. “It’s hard to put it in words. That’s not something that’s supposed to happen.”

Tom then turned away, crying.

Violent crime against foreigners is rare in tightly controlled China, and the assault occurred despite major security measures that have blanketed the capital city during the Olympics: A 100,000-strong security force plus countless volunteer guards have been deployed to protect against any trouble.

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Beijing’s Communist leaders are hypersensitive about anything that could take the shine off the games. China’s Vice Foreign Minister He Yafei visited the Bachmans in the hospital.

“The Chinese government paid high attention to this case,” He said in a statement issued by Xinhua, adding that authorities were conducting a “serious investigation.”

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