Wife of American killed in China returns to U.S.

0 Comments | Deseret News (Salt Lake City), Aug 16, 2008 | by Associated Press

ROCHESTER, Minn. -- One week after Barbara Bachman's husband was killed in a random knife attack in China that also hospitalized her with life-threatening injuries, she is back in her home state of Minnesota to continue her recovery.

Bachman arrived at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester late Friday morning, where she is listed in fair condition, and hospital officials said she was alert, talking and had good memory function.

Bachman was stabbed in the abdomen at a popular Beijing tourist attraction last Saturday. Her husband, Todd Bachman, died at the scene.

The assailant, Tang Yongming was identified by police as a distraught unemployed former factory worker. Yongming killed himself by jumping off the upper floor of the 13th-century Drum Tower, one of several stops scheduled as part of a group tour of the city in which the Bachmans were participating.

Avid volleyball fans, the Bachmans, from Lakeville, and traveled to China for the Olympics. Their daughter, Elisabeth "Wiz" Bachman McCutcheon, is a former U.S. Olympic volleyball player married to Hugh McCutcheon, who coaches the U.S. men's team.

Hugh McCutcheon is a former Brigham Young University coach and player

Elisabeth was with her parents at the time of the attack, but was unharmed. Hugh McCutcheon missed his team's first four games at the Olympics while tending to his family, but returned to the sidelines for a game against China.

After undergoing eight hours of surgery at a Beijing hospital, Barbara Bachman was airlifted back to Minnesota with her three daughters.

A statement issued by the Mayo Clinic said Barbara Bachman received excellent care while in China. She will continue postoperative recovery at Mayo and begin a rehabilitation program "in the near future," the statement read.

Contributing: Anne M. Peterson in Beijing