Serbian CrossFit competitor Lazar Dukic drowned at the end of his 800-meter swim at the 2024 CrossFit Games on Thursday, raising questions about the safety measures in place at the annual event in Fort Worth, Texas.
Dukic could be clearly seen struggling in the water around the 37-minute mark of a video stream — that has since been taken down — before going under with less than 50 meters remaining in the race. The 800-meter swim came after a 3.5-mile run, deviating from triathlon’s tradition of starting with swimming because it’s the riskiest event.
Some spectators said they yelled for lifeguards who were too far away to hear them. Others said they tried to jump in the water to help, but were prevented from assisting by a lifeguard. Two lifeguards on paddle boards were observing the general area around Dukic, but they did not appear to act.
“We watched Lazar go under, and we screamed for some lifeguards,” CrossFit athlete Cole Learn said. “They were pretty far away, so it was tough to do anything else. We were yelling for lifeguards, but unfortunately they couldn’t hear us and he never came back up. I’m absolutely devastated — that was not something I wanted to watch.”
CrossFit CEO Don Faul said there were safety personnel on site at the event.
Local law enforcement said seven firefighter units responded to a call for assistance around 8 a.m. and their dive team went in for a search. Just over an hour after their first diver entered the water, they recovered Dukic’s body.
The weather forecast for Fort Worth this morning was 91 degrees. The remainder of Thursday’s CrossFit Games action was suspended, and it is not yet known if the competition will continue this weekend.
“CrossFit is deeply saddened by the death of a CrossFit Games competitor during the swimming portion of Individual Event 1 at the 2024 CrossFit Games,” CrossFit said in a statement. “We are fully cooperating with authorities and doing everything we can to support the family at this time.”
West Virginia University assistant swim coach told SwimSwam that he offered to help them with the swimming event and “was basically told they didn’t need any help and they had it covered.”
“Then an athlete disappeared within 50m of the finish line and they couldn’t find him for two hours,” Dent said. “This wasn’t just an accident. It could have been avoided.”
Dukic was ranked 3rd in Serbia and 88th globally among male CrossFit athletes.
Screenshots of the swimmer in distress from the livestream, which has since been taken down from the internet:
This is why swimming is first in the triathlon. If you think about the swim-bike-run order, the athlete is closer to the ground with each leg. So when they run and are exhausted, they can stop and sit down if needed. That is not an option in swimming.
The guy was a strong swimmer. He played water polo. Why did they run a 5k in that heat, and then do the 800m swim? The spotters didn’t do their job.
we should celebrate this man like a god
The results of the coming investigation will be brutal.
Lifeguarding is a very serious business, not window dressing. What exactly are their qualifications? How did the organizers select and vet them? Tragically, it takes a needless drowning to reveal the lifeguards’ incompetence and why you don’t swim across a lake after a hard run, especially in extreme heat. Just clueless and irresponsible.
Deepest respects offered to the victim and sincere condolences to the family and loved ones for their painful loss.
This is absolutely f*cked.
I am so sorry for him and his loved ones. Just donated to the fundraiser.
Unbelievable.
This is horrifying. God bless him. 🤍
I see a fundraiser has been set up for his loved ones.
https://www.classy.org/give/608965/?fbclid=IwY2xjawEijBRleHRuA2FlbQIxMQABHTbbPjLX23Eyt4Gv-u6A9gXgDnSzuGdnWBb4qAJQGs72Vwd0fs3jp-bgeA_aem_sQbWScx9CHnSdYJI1N1y0w#!/donation/checkout