An American runner has tragically died suddenly in Michigan while competing in the Detroit Free Press Marathon.
The runner, who has not been identified, reportedly suffered a “medical emergency,” according to marathon officials.
They confirmed that a male runner dropped dead around the five-mile mark of the race.
The officials noted that the deceased was an American citizen.
Another runner, Corey Bellemore, who finished fourth in the men’s half marathon, said he was shocked to see someone pass away during the run.
“To see a death at a race is just it’s scary. It’s like super sad,” Bellemore said.
“You just think of the family, you think of the individual, the race-organizing committee.
“It’s hard for everyone. It’s hard for the running community.”
In a statement, Windsor police said officers responded to a report of a collapsed runner in the area of Riverside Drive and Elm Avenue.
The man was unresponsive and rushed to hospital for treatment.
However, doctors confirmed that he had already passed away and the man was declared dead.
Rob Moore, head track coach at Sandwich Secondary School, was manning a watering station a few blocks from the episode.
“You see people that are going through that have to sit on a curb for a little bit because you need some rest or people go to the curb because they want to throw up,” Moore said.
His crew oversaw hydrating runners and kept an eye out to make sure they were okay.
“You don’t wish this on anybody,” Moore said.
“It’s hard because now I’m going to think about this all the time.”
Chris Uszynski, who has been a race director for almost two decades, said, “It’s tragic.
“It’s something that never leaves you, especially as a race director because you never know when it’s going to happen.”
Of the hundreds of thousands of people that have signed up for his races, only three had been taken to hospital.
“Even though there’s a million things going on that day, your only focus is the safety of individuals and getting them over the finish line, back to their families and loved ones,” he added.
“It’s tragic when it happens.”
The identity of the runner and the cause of his death have not been made public.
No other information regarding the “medical emergency” has been revealed.
However, while the cause of the man’s death was not revealed, Uszinski urged runners to have their hearts examined by doctors before competing in races.
“That’s why we tell our runners all the time, make sure you go to a cardiologist,” said Uszinski.
“Make sure you get your EKG.
“Make sure you get checked out. Do a stress test.
“Make sure that we’re actually finding things before we actually go out and stress them for fun.”
The Detroit Free Press Marathon is a 42.195-kilometre race run every third Sunday in October in Detroit, Michigan, United States, and Windsor, Ontario, Canada, since 1978.
The marathon course is international and has featured the Detroit–Windsor Tunnel for all but two years of its existence.
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