Olympics: This is for the Bachmans, Say Us Volleyball Team After Murder Forces New Crackdown

The US men's volleyball team briefly set aside their shock at the murder of their coach's father-in-law to record an emotional victory in their opening match of the Olympic tournament yesterday afternoon.

Taking to the court at the Capital Gymnasium less than 24 hours after being told that Todd Bachman, the father-in-law of the coach Hugh McCutcheon and a familiar face to many of the team, had been stabbed to death at one of Beijing's leading tourist attractions, the Americans defeated Venezuela three sets to two.

Bachman and his wife Barbara, the parents of McCutcheon's wife, the former US Olympian Elisabeth Bachman, were attacked while visiting the Drum Tower in the city on Saturday afternoon. Bachman died at the scene, and his wife was in a critical condition yesterday after undergoing eight hours of surgery. Their attacker, a Chinese national named Tang Yongming, killed himself by leaping from the second floor of the tower after the attack.

The killing has prompted a security clampdown at tourist attractions across the city, and in a sign of the seriousness with which the situation is viewed, China's foreign and health ministers have visited the family in hospital to offer support.

The US players have been ordered not to go sightseeing in the wake of the attack, which has overshadowed the first weekend of the Games and deeply affected the volleyball squad. The Bachmans were regular spectators at international matches, and were particularly well known to the women's squad, who played their first game last night.

Thomas Hoff, the men's team captain, said a team-talk delivered by McCutcheon via conference call on Saturday night had helped inspire their victory. "We talked with Hugh on the phone yesterday . . . and to hear his voice and get the leadership from him was great," he said. "He is the guy who has been leading our squad for the last four years building to this and it meant a tremendous amount to myself and the guys when we heard from him.

"A lot of the guys had met him [Todd Bachman], and Wiz [Elisabeth] is part of the volleyball family, and we have all known her for a long time. We really felt the loss as being one of our own, and that's why it hurt so much. We were so close to them."

The assistant coach, Ron Larsen, said the team would attempt to honor the family on the court. "The Bachman family were great volleyball fans, Wiz was a wonderful player, and they watched her play almost every match - they were great followers and supporters of the men's and women's team," he said. "The best way we can honor them is to compete every day and play hard every day, and enjoy and love the game of volleyball as they did.

"We went into this match knowing this tragedy had happened, but we also know we had invested four years, and in some cases eight, 12, 16 years of our lives in this opportunity to see what we could do. That might not mean winning a gold medal, but it's about playing better each day."

China's president Hu Jintao expressed regret during a meeting with his US counterpart, George W Bush. "I would like to express my heartfelt sympathy to you and the family of the victims over this unfortunate incident," he said.

Earlier Wang Wei, vice-president of the Beijing organizing committee, passed on his condolences to the family, and said that security checks would be stepped up across the city, including weapon searches at major tourist attractions. As many as 500,000 tourists are likely to visit the capital during the Games, which run until August 24. "After this stabbing happened it is our intention to strengthen security in scenic spots, and we may add checks to ensure that no weapons are being brought into these areas. Beijing is a safe city but we are not immune."

The Australian Olympic committee reacted by advising all its athletes and team officials to wear team apparel when venturing outside the Village. Wang Wei claimed that was an unnecessary measure, and that there was no need for others to take similar action. "This was an isolated criminal act, and we have reason to believe that security measures are sufficient."