“Strongman to Death Brought Down the Pedestrian”

So begins today’s report by Maria Shramenko, of Autochel.ru, as the police have made their first comments in the case of a car driven by Russian strongman Mikhail Koklyaev striking and killing a pedestrian.

Koklyaev is described as driving his “Toyota Camry at breakneck speed,” over 130 kph (over 80 mph), and refusing to stop for a police officer.  In the resulting chase, Koklyaev struck and killed a 51-year-old pedestrian who was crossing the street against a red light.  Koklyaev drove on, fleeing the scene, but then was apprehended by the officers who had been chasing him.

“From the medical examination Koklyaev refused, but all the witnesses, and without examination was clear: he was drunk,” continues Ms. Shramenko’s report, which goes on to quote police investigator Alexander Lupanov:

"We are doing the first test of this fact, the prosecution has not yet begun . . . In any incident is always a lot of nuances.  Before a decision is required to hold a series of standard procedures. Mikhail Koklyaev is in the hospital with injuries sustained in an accident.  It is all information.”

Ms. Shramenko also quotes the victim’s son: “Yes, father went to the red light, but cannot this person, who was rushing himself at the enormous speed by drunk, remain unpunished?! - without the special hope in the voice discusses the son of that been killed Alexander. - To us came the friend-athletes of this driver, they said that to it is bad, it in the hospital. They proposed material aid. Mother refused, she did not begin even to talk with them. Themselves somehow let us manage.”

Providing background on Mikhail Koklyaev, Ms. Shramenko wrote, “Athlete Mikhail [Koklyaev], possibly, is not so popular in Chelyabinsk as Elbrus [Nigmatullin] or Dmitriy [Kononets], but his rating in the world stage of heavy athletics, according to the estimation of observers, is substantially higher . . .  Today it [he] enters into the five of best [strongmen] of planet. In this year the strong person from Chelyabinsk occupied the second place at the prestigious tournament “Arnold [Classik]”, founder of whom is Arnold Schwarzenegger.”

Fellow strongman competitors are also quoted, with all expressing deep sorrow at what has happened.