According to CrossFit officials, a competitor from the organization died during a competition in Texas.
The body of the athlete, who was identified as 28-year-old Lazar uki, was discovered in a local lake. The incident occurred at Marine Creek Lake, which is located near Dallas.
The fire department was dispatched to the area around 8 a.m. after receiving a report about an individual in the water.
After confirming the death, Don Faul, the CEO of CrossFit, released a statement. He said the organization is deeply affected by the incident.
The individual was participating in the swimming portion of an event at the CrossFit Games.
CrossFit is working with authorities to support the athlete’s family. Faul noted that the organization has a safety crew that was at the event.
He said the entire community is doing everything it can to help the family during this difficult time.
Serbian athlete uki was last seen during the swimming portion of the competition.
The event, which was an individual run-swim, started with a 5.6-kilometer run and ended with a distance swim of 800 meters. During the livestream, it can be seen that one of the competitors stopped in the water as they were heading toward the finish line. It is not clear if this was uki.
During the event’s final moments, the spectators were focused on the athletes who were racing toward the finish line.
However, Will Compton, a podcaster, said he saw an incident happen.
According to Compton, he witnessed an individual struggling to breathe and then disappearing in the water. He said he couldn’t believe his eyes when he saw this.
It has been speculated that the CrossFit Games staff did not see this man, who was reportedly swimming near the finish line, drown.
Kaitlin Pritchard, a spectator, said that she now regrets not knowing what happened at the time. She said it appeared that the athlete was tired.
It has also been speculated that the organizers did not immediately notify the spectators about the missing individual.
As a result, people were still watching and swimming over the man who disappeared in the water. A GoFundMe page has been established to help the family of uki, who was reportedly an elite athlete and a beloved friend.
The page has already received over $270,000 in donations. According to the organizers of the campaign, uki was known for his positive and uplifting nature.
He was also a caring and humorous individual who supported his friends and family.