A tragic incident occurred at the CrossFit Games in Fort Worth, Texas, on Thursday when a participant lost his life during the swimming segment of the competition. Lazar Đukić, a 28-year-old CrossFit athlete from Serbia, disappeared near the conclusion of an 800-meter swim, which was being broadcast live from Marine Creek Lake around 8 a.m.
Authorities were alerted and a body was recovered from the lake approximately two hours later. The CrossFit Games organization confirmed the unfortunate demise of an athlete in a statement released later that afternoon. The statement expressed deep sorrow over the incident and assured full cooperation with the authorities while extending support to the bereaved family.
Đukić had been a regular participant in the CrossFit Games for several years. He was a well-known figure in the CrossFit community, ranking third in Serbia and 88th globally in the male category. Prior to the event, Đukić had shared his excitement about participating in the Games on his Instagram account, encouraging his followers to watch the individual run swim.
The individual run swim event, which Đukić was participating in when he disappeared, begins with a 3.5-mile run followed by an 800-meter swim. Images and videos posted on the CrossFit Games’ Instagram account showed hundreds of athletes preparing for the event before dawn on Thursday.
Following the incident, the day’s remaining events were put on hold. However, officials did not confirm whether the body retrieved from the lake was that of the missing athlete. The Fort Worth Star-Telegram reported that seven firefighter units had responded to a potential drowning call at the lakeshore around the same time Đukić went missing.
The CrossFit Games, which attracts approximately 10,000 participants from around the globe, is scheduled to continue through Sunday in Fort Worth.