A competitor at the CrossFit Games in Fort Worth, Texas, drowned on Thursday, Aug. 8. The incident happened around 8 a.m. local time at Marine Creek Lake. The Fort Worth Fire Department responded to the scene as well as the Fort Worth Police Department after the athlete reportedly went underwater and went missing in the water.
First responders used dive teams and drones to eventually recovery the man’s body an hour later. The local medical examiner later identified the victim as 28-year-old Lazar Dukic, who was reportedly from Serbia.
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CrossFit issued a statement on the death, with CEO Don Faul saying that they are “deeply saddened” by the incident and they are cooperating with police. Faul said that the remainder of Thursday’s events were “suspended.”
“We’re doing everything in our power during this tragic time to support the family, to support our community,” Faul said.
Multiple videos of the event show Lukic struggling to stay above the water as other competitors passed him to cross the finish line. Streams by ESPN, Facebook and YouTube also ended suddenly around the time he reportedly went missing underwater.
Dukic’s death occurred during an event involving a 3.5 mile run and 800-meter swim. While safety personnel were on the site during the event, questions are being raised about their effectiveness in the wake of the drowning.
Thirty teams from around the globe are competing in the CrossFit Games. This is the first time the event has been held in Texas in the competition’s 18-year history.
CrossFit said that it was “regrouping” and would be talking about plans for the remainder of the competition.
