Teenager on sub took Rubik's Cube to break record, mother tells BBC

Teenager Suleman Dawood, who died successful the Titan submersible, took his Rubik's Cube with him due to the fact that helium wanted to interruption a satellite record, his parent told the BBC.

The 19-year-old applied to Guinness World Records and his father, Shahzada, who besides died, had brought a camera to seizure the moment.

Christine Dawood and her girl were connected committee the Polar Prince, the sub's enactment vessel, erstwhile connection came done that communications with the Titan had been lost.

"I didn't comprehend astatine that infinitesimal what it meant - and past it conscionable went downhill from there," she said.

In her archetypal interview, Mrs Dawood said she had planned to spell with her hubby to presumption the wreck of the Titanic, but the travel was cancelled due to the fact that of the Covid pandemic.

"Then I stepped backmost and gave them abstraction to acceptable [Suleman] up, due to the fact that helium truly wanted to go," she said.

As good arsenic Suleman and his begetter Shahzada Dawood, 3 different radical died connected board: Stockton Rush, the 61-year-old CEO of OceanGate which owned the Titan, British businessman Hamish Harding, 58, and Paul-Henry Nargeolet, 77, a erstwhile French navy diver and renowned explorer.

Speaking of her son, Mrs Dawood said Suleman loved the Rubik's Cube truthful overmuch that helium carried it with him everywhere, dazzling onlookers by solving the analyzable puzzle successful 12 seconds.

"He said, 'I'm going to lick the Rubik's Cube 3,700 meters beneath oversea astatine the Titanic."

The family, including girl Alina, 17, boarded the Polar Prince connected Father's Day.

Mrs Dawood said they hugged and made jokes successful the moments earlier her hubby and lad boarded the Titan submersible.

"I was truly blessed for them due to the fact that some of them, they truly wanted to bash that for a precise agelong time," she said.

Mrs Dawood described her hubby arsenic infectiously funny astir the satellite astir him - the benignant of idiosyncratic who made the household ticker documentaries aft dinner.

"He had this quality of childlike excitement," she said.

Mrs Dawood and her girl stayed connected committee the Polar Prince arsenic the hunt and rescue ngo shifted from hopeful to desperate.

"I deliberation I mislaid anticipation erstwhile we passed the 96 hours mark," Mrs Dawood said.

She said that's erstwhile she sent a connection to her family. "I said: 'I'm preparing for the worst.' That's erstwhile I mislaid hope."

Alina held retired a spot longer, she said. "She didn't suffer anticipation until the telephone with Coast Guard. When they fundamentally informed america that they recovered debris."

The household returned to St John's connected Saturday, and connected Sunday held a ceremonial supplication for Shahzada and Suleman. Mrs Dawood said she was touched that the Imam said a supplication for each 5 of the men killed.

Mrs Dawood said she and her girl volition effort to larn to decorativeness the Rubik's Cube successful Suleman's honour, and she intends to proceed her husband's work.

"He was progressive successful truthful galore things, helium helped truthful galore radical and I deliberation I deliberation that I truly privation to proceed that bequest and springiness him that level erstwhile his enactment has continued and it's rather important for my girl arsenic well."

Mrs Dawood declined to sermon the ongoing investigations into the tragedy. But erstwhile asked however she and her girl would find closure she said: "Is determination specified a thing? I don't know."

"I miss them," she said, taking a heavy breath. "I really, truly miss them."