CrossFit launches investigation into Lazar Dukic’s death

The CrossFit brand and its flagship competition, the CrossFit Games, have continued to suffer media and social pressure in recent days. And with good reason. The death of athlete Lazar Dukic last Thursday, during the first of the men’s individual events at the 2024 Games, has shaken the values of a brand whose community of practitioners is its greatest asset. Or at least, that has been the case to date.

What happened to Lazar Dukic?

The incident occurred during the final moments of the running and swimming event. Dukic suffered cardiac arrest just 100 meters from the finish line, and despite the presence of several rescuers, none of the CrossFit security team came to his rescue.

In the face of such action, CrossFit’s reputation has been undermined, and this fact has forced the CEO of the brand, Don Faul, to offer a video statement to try to clarify some basic issues. In the video, the CrossFit executive wanted to show the roadmap that, from his company, they intend to follow in the coming weeks: “We regret the death of Lazar and our hearts cry for his family.” “The safety of our athletes is the most important thing, this tragedy happened under our surveillance and responsibility, so we must understand what happened and do what is within our power,” Faul said.

Similarly, he announced that, “To ensure that this does not happen again, we have initiated a third-party investigation to fully understand the circumstances.” Therefore, he asked for “patience” and “support” as these proceedings progress, respecting the privacy of those affected, and argued that “any necessary changes determined by the investigation will be implemented”.

Athletes in the eye of the storm

Regarding the decision to continue with the CrossFit Games, Don Faul says that “after a series of conversations on Thursday night, we decided to continue and we understand that not everyone agrees with our plan, but we are doing the best we can. Our decision put the athletes in a very difficult position, and we respect their personal decisions, they are choosing to honor Lazar in different ways”.

As Faul explains, athletes have been faced with the most difficult of situations these days - to either continue competing under exceptionally painful circumstances, or withdraw, with the financial losses that such a decision entails for them. For many, the CrossFit Games are the biggest showcase for sponsors and patronage, and on a sporting level, some of these athletes are aware that they may not compete in such a scenario again. In total, 13 out of 80 athletes have decided to withdraw from the competition.

“There was no adequate recognition of this tragedy”

This incident was discussed by Luciana Dal Agnol, wife of Brazilian athlete Guilherme Malheiros, one of the competitors who decided to withdraw the day after Dukic’s tragic death. In a video posted on YouTube, the Brazilian commented that “there was no adequate recognition of this tragedy by the organizers. In accordance with our values, this was not the right thing to do.”

The competition, which was neither delayed nor altered in its schedule, “forced the other participants to make quick decisions while they were distressed by the news. Something that hurt us a lot is that, for those who have followed the broadcast of the event from home, they have not seen a single banner of mourning, nothing. It is as if nothing had happened.”

Malheiros’ wife also criticised the organisation’s actions in the hours following the tragic event: “The decision to continue was made without taking into account the athletes’ emotional state.” As Malheiros himself explained, the athletes were called to an emergency meeting where they were told that the competition would go ahead, which led to a group of athletes immediately leaving.

At the meeting, and again under the guidance of Luciana Dal Agnol, it was suggested that part of the prize money be divided among all the athletes, so that the competition would forget about its monetary purpose in the face of such a dramatic event. The rest of the money would be donated to Lazar Dukic’s family, but, despite this proposal, CrossFit rejected it and decided to continue with the event as planned.