LAKE PLACID, N.Y., May 6, 2017 (Gephardt Daily) — Bobsledding star Steven Holcomb was found dead in his room at the United States Olympic Training Center in Lake Placid, N.Y., the U.S. Olympic Committee announced on Saturday. He was 37.
No details were readily available surrounding Holcomb’s death, the USOC said.
Holcomb, a native of Park City, Utah was a member of the gold medal-winning four-man bobsled team at the 2010 Vancouver Games. The gold was the Americans’ first in the event since 1948.
Holcomb claimed two bronze medals in the two and four-man bobsled competitions at the 2014 Sochi Games.
“The entire Olympic family is shocked and saddened by the incredibly tragic loss today of Steven Holcomb,” USOC CEO Scott Blackmun said in a statement. “Steve was a tremendous athlete and even better person, and his perseverance and achievements were an inspiration to us all. Our thoughts and prayers are with Steve’s family and the entire bobsledding community.”
Holcomb underwent experimental eye surgery in 2008 to correct a disorder called keratoconus, which distorts vision and often leads to blindness. Before the surgery, Holcomb admitted that he battled depression and revealed that he attempted suicide in his 2012 book, But Now I See: My Journey From Blindness to Olympic Gold.
“Depression isn’t something you catch in the wind one day and get sick the next,” Holcomb wrote. “It is a gradual, degenerative process, much like my keratoconus. And just like my blindness, I chose to battle the demon on my own, without telling anyone or seeking help from others.”
Holcomb won 60 World Cup medals and 10 medals at world championships in addition to his three Olympic medals.
“It would be easy to focus on the loss in terms of his Olympic medals and enormous athletic contributions to the organization, but USA Bobsled & Skeleton is a family and right now we are trying to come to grips with the loss of our teammate, our brother and our friend,” USA Bobsled & Skeleton CEO Darrin Steele said.
