MOSCOW – Alexander Galimov, the only player of the Lokomotiv Yaroslavl team who had survived the plane crash last Wednesday, passed away on Monday morning in a hospital.

Galimov died of severe burns of his body and respiratory tract five days after the air plane tragedy.

“Despite ongoing treatment in the burn centre of the Vishnevski Institute of Surgery, Alexander Galimov died of life-threatening burns,” the hospital announced.

Galimov, born in Yaroslavl on 2nd February 1985, spent his whole career with his hometown club Lokomotiv Yaroslavl. The forward debuted in the Russian Superliga in 2004 and played 428 games in Russia’s top league.

He was a silver medalist at the 2005 IIHF World U20 Championship and played exhibition games for the senior national team during the past two years.

With the death of Galimov, the whole Lokomotiv Yaroslavl team has been wiped out. Doctors are still fighting for the life of the only remaining survivor of the crash, flight engineer Alexander Sizov. 44 people died in the crash of a Yakovlev Yak-42 plane in Yaroslavl on 7th September, most of them players and staff of the KHL team from ten different nationalities. The team was on the way to Minsk for the opening of the KHL season.

Tens of thousands paid tribute to the team members on Saturday at Yaroslavl’s Arena 2000, but also in other parts of the world.

Prague’s Staromestske namesti, the old town square where Czech world champions were celebrated in the past, turned into a place of mourning on Sunday as former team mates led by Jaromir Jagr and Patrik Elias, coaches, officials and tens of thousands of fans remembered Jan Marek, Karel Rachunek and Josef Vasicek, the three Czech players who died in the accident. This week the funerals will take place in the players’ hometowns.

In Belarus, tens of thousands paid tribute to Ruslan Salei in the Gorki Park in front of Yunost Minsk’s arena and laid flowers and wreaths at his coffin on Saturday. On Sunday he was buried at Minsk’s Moscow Cemetery next to Belarusian musician Vladimir Mulyavin.

Over 10,000 people gathered to Jönköping’s Kinnarps Arena on Saturday to say goodbye to Stefan Liv, the Swedish national team goalkeeper, among them former teammates and coaches, such as Johan Åkerman, David Petrasek, Björn Melin and Nichlas Torp.

The body of Pavol Demitra was transported to Slovakia on Sunday. The memorial service will take place on 15th September in his hometown of Trencin at 15:00 at the hockey arena.

Also the body of Karlis Skrastins was brought to his home country and received with military honours in Latvia. A memorial service for the public will be scheduled this week.

MARTIN MERK