Tiotes body flown back to Ivory Coast

Cheick Tiote’s body will arrive back in the Ivory Coast on Thursday where tributes will be paid to the international by his former teammates, the Ivorian Football Federation (IFF) said on Monday.

Tiote – who was a member of the Ivory Coast squad that ended a 23-year drought by winning the 2015 Africa Cup of Nations – died on June 5 aged 30 years after ‘suddenly fainting’ during a training session with his second-tier Chinese club Beijing Enterprises.

“The body Tiote Cheick Ismael will arrive on Thursday, June 15 at 13:50 (GMT) at Abidjan International Airport,” the IFF said in a statement.

Tiote had 52 caps for ‘The Elephants’ and played in two World Cups in 2010 and 2014.

The national team returned to Abidjan on Monday after an Africa Cup of Nations qualifying defeat to Guinea and presented their condolences to Tiote’s family.

Tiote had only joined the Chinese team in February after a seven-year stay with Newcastle United.