Latvian on life support after suspected hate crime

Andris Straumanis | 

The Latvian man now tethered to a life support machine in a British hospital apparently was attacked after a group of youths heard him and two other Balts speaking Russian, police said in their latest update of the case.

The 38-year-old man was stabbed in the head the night of Dec. 3 and now is in critical condition. Two acquaintances, a Latvian man and an Estonian woman, also were stabbed but were treated in hospitals and released, Latvian and British media report.

Police are appealing for tips from anyone who may have witnessed the attack, which may have been racially motivated.

“This was a vicious attack that has left a man fighting for his life in hospital,” Detective Chief Inspector Sam Haworth of the Greater Manchester Police said in a Dec. 8 statement.

The critically injured man had been visiting friends in the Pendleton district and was returning home with his acquaintances at about 11:15 p.m. when the attack occurred, police said. A group of teenagers overheard them speaking Russian, verbally abused them and then attacked them, police said.

The Latvian still in the hospital had only recently arrived in the Manchester area searching for work. The other Latvian and the Estonian woman have been in Britain for several years, the Manchester Evening News said.

Andris Straumanis is a special correspondent for and a co-founder of Latvians Online. From 2000–2012 he was editor of the website.

zah-NAY tee-LAH-nay

Andris Straumanis | 

Latvian athletes have done well in college sports in the United States, especially in men’s and women’s basketball and in track and field. Case in point: Zane Teilāne, the 6-foot, 7-inch (2-meter) starting center for the women’s basketball squad at Western Illinois University in Macomb.

Teilāne, who hails from Āgenskalns in Rīga, in October was voted the preseason player of the year in the Mid-Continent Conference. A junior majoring in business, Teilāne is in her second season at Western Illinois. She also has played on the Latvian national team.

Her abilities have drawn the attention of media throughout central Illinois and in communities where Western Illinois has played.

However, we have to wonder about the pronunciation guide offered by the Lawrence Journal-World. A Dec. 8 story, highlighting what Teilāne might do to the hometown Kansas University team, suggests that her name is pronounced zah-NAY tee-LAH-nay.

Aargh! Let’s try ZAH-ne TAY-lah-ne instead, putting the emphasis on the correct syllables.

Western Illinois University is the source of the mangled pronunciation.

Teilāne, by the way, is not the only Latvian on the Western Illinois team. Also on the roster is forward Līga Bergvalde of Rīga.

Andris Straumanis is a special correspondent for and a co-founder of Latvians Online. From 2000–2012 he was editor of the website.

Attack on Latvians may be racially motivated

Andris Straumanis | 

A 38-year-old Latvian man remains in critical condition in a hospital after being stabbed in the head during what may have been a racially motivated attack Dec. 3 near Manchester in the United Kingdom, according to Greater Manchester Police.

The man was attacked Dec. 3 at a house on Lower Broughton Road in Pendleton. Two other Latvians, a man and a woman, also were injured in the incident, police said in a Dec. 7 press release.

Police said they have not ruled out that the attack was racially motivated.

Police were called to the house at about 11:30 p.m. Dec. 3. A crowd of about 20 youths outside the home dispersed when police arrived. The man with stab wounds to the head was taken to Hope Hospital in Salford, according to BBC News.

Police are asking anyone with information about the incident to call Crimestoppers, anonymously, on 0800 555 111.

This is the second attack on Latvians in the United Kingdom in recent months. Three Latvian workers were beaten in Northern Ireland last month.

Latvian State Television reported that Latvian workers abroad may begin using Web sites to warn others about potential danger spots.

Andris Straumanis is a special correspondent for and a co-founder of Latvians Online. From 2000–2012 he was editor of the website.