Tragic trapeze artist planned to quit

THE young Russian acrobat who plunged to his death in a circus fall at Scariff, Co Clare, on Monday night had planned to take a year off because he and his wife planned to have a baby.

She partnered him in the performance and was injured. The dead man, Vitaly Kharapavitski, 26, had informed the owners of the circus that they would not be available next year as they were returning home to Russia.

Tom Courtney, who runs the Royal Russian Circus with his son, Wayne, said: “He told me he and his wife had decided to take a year out and return home to start a family. They were such a lovely couple and they very much wanted to have children.

“The performance involving the hot air balloon lasted six or seven minutes and he was doing the very last trick when the accident happened. There were only a few seconds left in the performance.”

He said the couple had been performing the routine for the past two years. He described it as “high risk”.

Mr Courtney said that each artist is responsible for the equipment used during performance.

“That is the way it has always been in the circus — no one can else can touch your equipment. That is why this makes this tragedy so unbelievable because the two were always so meticulous in checking their equipment.”

The circus boss said the balloon was controlled by a technician who worked with the couple.

“They stared working with the circus last March. We have been in contact with his family in Russia and arranging for them to be flown here.”

The dead man’s wife arrived back at the circus yesterday morning after being treated for a hand injury at the Mid-Western Regional Hospital in Limerick.

Mr Courtney said: “We are all very upset and our people are comforting her. It is very difficult time.”

He said: “The gardaí and the health and safety people have taken over the situatIon now. We don’t know what our plans are now.”

Superintendent Tony Kenneally said gardaí were treating the performer’s death as a “tragic accident” and were carrying out an investigation to determine how he died.

He appealed for anyone who witnessed the accident to come forward. A spokesman for the Health and Safety Authority (HSA) confirmed yesterday that equipment has been removed from the Royal Russian Circus’s big top and circus employees interviewed as part of the HSA’s investigation.

A post mortem was carried out on the body at the Mid-Western Regional Hospital and indications are that the acrobat died from head injuries.