A woman places flowers at the site of the assassination of Kazakhstan's Olympic figure skater Denis Ten in Almaty, Kazakhstan July 20, 2018. REUTERS/Shamil Zhumatov - RC1B8C889C90
Two suspects have been detained and one has confessed in the stabbing death of Denis Ten, a 25-year-old Olympic bronze medalist in men’s figure skating in 2014, authorities say.
Ten was stabbed to death on Thursday in his hometown of Almaty, Kazakhstan and rushed to the hospital.
On Friday, Kazakhstan officials said Arman Kudaibergenov and Nuraly Kiyasov had been detained in relation to the skater’s death.
Figure Skating – Pyeongchang 2018 Winter Olympics – Men Single Skating short program competition – Gangneung Ice Arena – Gangneung, South Korea – February 16, 2018 – Denis Ten of Kazakhstan performs. REUTERS/Damir Sagolj – DEVEE2G04HXVK
Prosecutor Berik Zhuyrektayev said Kiyasov had “confessed his guilt in the presence of an attorney” during a live television statement on Friday.
According to Russian media reports, CPR was performed for two hours before Ten was pronounced dead of massive blood loss.
Per the report, the two men were attempting to steal mirrors off of Ten’s vehicle, sparking the incident. Authorities released a photo of Ten being held by two men in masks, camouflage clothing and body armor.
“Denis Ten was a great athlete and a great ambassador for his sport,” International Olympic Committee president Thomas Bach said in a statement on Thursday. “A warm personality and a charming man. Such a tragedy to lose him at such a young age.”
–Field Level Media
