It is still unclear whether Grant died at the hospital or during transport.
New Delhi:
US journalist Grant Wahl, who was detained in Qatar for wearing a rainbow shirt in support of the LGBTQ community, died while covering the FIFA World Cup, his brother announced today.
Grant, 48, collapsed while covering the quarterfinal match between Argentina and the Netherlands at the Lusail Iconic Stadium on Friday.
Grant’s brother, Eric, alleged that the Qatari government may have been involved in the death of the former Sports Illustrated journalist.
“My name is Eric Wahl. I live in Seattle, Washington. I am Grant Wahl’s brother. I’m gay,” he said in a video posted on Instagram. “I’m the reason he wore the rainbow shirt to the World Cup. My brother was healthy. He told me he received death threats. I do not believe my brother just died. I believe he was killed. And I just beg for any help.”
At the start of the World Cup, Grant had said that the World Cup security denied him entry to the United States’ opener against Wales at the Ahmad Bin Ali Stadium in Al Rayyan and asked him to take his rainbow shirt off. He said his phone was taken away when he tweeted about the incident.
He added that a security official at the venue approached him later to apologise and allowed him into the stadium. He also received an apology from a FIFA representative, he had said.
It is still unclear whether Grant died at the hospital or during transport.
“We’re still trying to find out,” Eric said. “He collapsed at the stadium, was given cpr, was taken by Uber to hospital and died according to Celine. We just spoke with the state department and Celine has spoken to Ron Klain and the White House.”
There have been concerns over the rights of fans travelling to the event, especially LGBT+ individuals and women, who are discriminated against by the Qatari government, according to rights groups.
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