Lazar Dukic, a 28-year-old Serbian competitive athlete, turned up dead during a swimming event in a lake held by The CrossFit Games in Texas on Thursday, The Associated Press (AP) reported.
A Fort Worth Fire Department (FWFD) official said they were notified around 8 a.m. to assist the police in searching for “a participant in the water that was down and hadn’t been seen in some point in time,” the outlet reported. The swimmer’s lifeless body was reportedly found around an hour later, the FWFD official added.
The Tarrant County medical examiner’s office revealed the deceased’s identity but did not list the cause of death, the outlet reported. The CrossFit Games announced that they were “deeply saddened by the death” of Dukic “during the swimming portion of Individual Event 1 at the 2024 CrossFit Games” in a tweet.
“We are fully cooperating with authorities and doing everything we can to support the family at this time,” the tweet read. (RELATED: Medics Rush To Assist As Olympic Swimmer Tamara Potocka Collapses Right After Race)
— The CrossFit Games (@CrossFitGames) August 8, 2024
CrossFit added in the tweet that they had “suspended” the rest of the events planned for Thursday. “We’re doing everything in our power during this tragic time to support the family, to support our community,” CrossFit CEO Don Faul said during a news conference, the AP reported. Footage from the swimming contest appeared to be “a spectator” jumping into the lake, Cameron Hogg tweeted.
If you look to the far right you can see what looks to be a spectator jump in the water. Hearing Lazar is still missing. Hope everybody’s okay, scary stuff. #crossfit #crossfitgames #runswim pic.twitter.com/WbnNnsCphO
— Cameron Hogg (@Camhogg70) August 8, 2024
Dukic spoke of his athletic motivations in his last message on his Instagram. “‘It is the only thing I am good at, so why not just do it?'” he said in the video, recalling having heard it from another. Dukic advised people “to train harder than what you will compete.”
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The CrossFit Games began in 2007 “as the first competition to objectively measure fitness,” the games’ website claimed. Dukic’s biography as listed by the games’ website ranked him as the 88th best athlete among men in the games worldwide.
