DALLAS, Texas — A tragic incident occurred during the CrossFit Games on Thursday morning when a competitor lost his life while participating in a swimming event at Marine Creek Lake in Fort Worth, Texas.
CrossFit CEO Don Faul expressed the organization’s deep sadness during a news conference, confirming that they are working closely with authorities to investigate the death of the athlete.
The Tarrant County medical examiner identified the competitor as 28-year-old Lazar Dukic from Serbia. As of now, the cause of his death has not been determined.
According to the Fort Worth Fire Department, emergency services were called around 8 a.m. to assist the police after a participant was reported missing in the water. Event officers were alerted when Dukic was last seen in the water but did not resurface.
Although the Fort Worth Fire Department arrived for search and rescue, they were not on the scene when the initial call was made.
Faul emphasized that CrossFit had implemented a safety plan and had safety personnel on-site during the event. However, CrossFit did not respond to a request from The Associated Press for more details about this plan.
The event on Thursday included a 3.5-mile (5.6-kilometer) run followed by an 800-meter (0.5-mile) swim, with an estimated 10,000 people in attendance. The CrossFit Games, which began on Thursday, were scheduled to continue through Sunday.
Dukic was known not only for his athletic prowess but also as an ambassador for FITAID, a sports drink brand. Gijs Spaans, general manager for FITAID in Europe, remembered Dukic as a driven athlete and a person who “lit up the room” wherever he went.
“He had an incredible work ethic but always made time for others,” Spaans said. “He was just a really good person.”
Spaans, who was watching the swim via livestream, became concerned when Dukic’s name didn’t appear in the finish list, even though he had been among the top five for most of the race.
“I thought he had this. But then I noticed his name wasn’t showing up in the finishes,” Spaans recalled. “He was a great swimmer, and he was in it to win it.”
The CrossFit Games, first held in 2007, aim to “find the fittest athletes in the world,” according to the CrossFit website. The event’s challenges change each year, with details often revealed just before the competition.
“The CrossFit community is like a family,” Faul stated. “We’re doing everything we can to support the family and our community during this tragic time.”
Dukic’s biography on the CrossFit website notes that he was the third-ranked CrossFit athlete in Serbia and the 88th-ranked worldwide. He finished ninth in his debut at the Games in 2021, improved to eighth the following season, and secured ninth place again in 2023.
