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ISSUE 19 | NOV 2014
AT RISK
26 • Touchline • Issue 18
Ultramarathon burn victim wins $10m
payout
An ultramarathon
runner who
suffered life-
threatening burns
when a bushfire
tore through an
event in Western
Australia is
believed to have
reached a $10
million settlement
with the race
organisers.
Turia Pitt, 26,
suffered burns
covering more
than 60 per cent
of her body while
running in the
100km race in
WA’s Kimberley
region in
September 2011.
A WA
parliamentary
committee later found Hong Kong-based organisers Racing the Planet did not
take reasonable steps to ensure the safety of the runners, several of whom
were burnt in the blaze.
Ms Pitt and another severely burnt runner, Kate Sanderson, were each given
$450,000 in act-of-grace payments from the WA government.
But Racing the Planet had continued to deny fault and legal proceedings were
begun against the race organiser.
Her lawyer, Greg Walsh, said the Supreme Court action launched in February
last year had ended in an out-of-court settlement.
Ms Sanderson, 38, settled with Racing the Planet last year in a separate
agreement.
Turia Pitt suffered life-threatening injuries
when she was caught in a bushfire during an
Ultramarathon in Western Australia.
‘At Risk’ is a regular feature which highlights recent news stories about some of the accidents
and injuries that occur in the sport and leisure world. Risk is present in our everyday lives
even when we are playing sport and having fun. Here we report some of the more tragic and
bizarre events that lead to loss, injury and sometimes even death in our industry.
Bride-to-be dies
on court after
collapsing during a
netball game
A 27-year-old champion netball
player, who was due to marry this
year, has died after suffering a fatal
heart attack during a match.
Beth Leske, who excelled in the sport
from a young age, died while playing
a club match when she suddenly
collapsed on the courts at Fred Finch
Park at Berkeley, near Wollongong,
in New South Wales, Australia.Ms
Leske also left behind a young son,
Tarne, when she died from a heart
attack on the netball court. Two
off-duty paramedics rushed to her
side to perform CPR, before she was
rushed to a Wollongong hospital
where she later died.
Beth Leske and her husband-to-be
Chris Hendry where due to marry
this year. She was a former Illawarra
Sports High School student and
an Illawarra representative junior
basketball player during her teen
years. In 2000 she competed in the
national championships with the
Illawarra under 14 girls basketball
team representing NSW Country.