Freerunner & parkour enthusiasts sneak into Old Trafford just hours before Michael Carrick testimonial | inside World Soccer

Freerunner & parkour enthusiasts sneak into Old Trafford just hours before Michael Carrick testimonial

Sunday, June 11, 2017

A group of freerunner and parkour enthusiasts thought Old Trafford would be a good place to break into - just over a week after the Manchester bombing.

Rikke Brewer, a freerunner, and his fellow parkour enthusiasts shared a video of themselves gaining access into the Theatre of Dreams on YouTube.

Upon arriving at Old Trafford, they evaded stadium security and entered the iconic stadium via the Sir Alex Ferguson Stand using external cables as a ladder.

The group of teenagers then proceed to run along the Stretford End roof as one of the foursome sits on the edge, dangling his legs over the side.

Remaining unchallenged, they head pitchside to race across the famous hallowed turf, pulling off gleeful somersaults as they go.

With day breaking, the gang make their escape through a door and eventually are spotted by security staff but manage to get away.

Police confirmed they were called at 6:54 am, but the intruders had left the scene upon their arrival.

The incident occurred hours before Michael Carrick's testimonial game and less than two weeks after a terror attack killed 22 people at Manchester Arena.

Manchester United later released a statement, branding the quartet "stupid and irresponsible".

In the early hours of last Sunday morning, stadium security chased four urban climbers off the premises at Old Trafford after they had gained access to the stadium illegally, by scaling the outer works area of the stadium and gaining access to the roof.

Such efforts appear to be motivated by a trend for similar actions on social media and followed a successful attempt to climb to the roof of a city centre hotel earlier that day.

Their stupid and irresponsible actions, especially at such a sensitive time, put last Sunday's game at risk and occupied both club staff and, more importantly, police officers in hours of work to make sure that the stadium was safe to stage the match.

The response of the police was outstanding. With over 130,000 people coming into the Old Trafford area on Sunday, the last thing they needed was to have their time wasted in this way. But as ever, they conducted a thorough search of the stadium to confirm it was safe to hold the match.

The security of fans attending games at Old Trafford is our highest priority and we work constantly with all local authorities and security contractors and advisors to keep all security measures, systems and protocols under constant review.

The fact that the necessary checks were carried out in time for the game to go ahead is testament to those close relationships.

The episode is the latest security embarrassment for United, who were left with red faces last year when two youngsters slept at the stadium overnight after sneaking off following a tour.

Last May, the stadium was evacuated and the match with Bournemouth was abandoned after a contractor left a dummy bomb in a toilet cubicle.

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