Olympic track cyclist Kelly Catlin, who helped the U.S. women’s pursuit team win the silver medal at the Rio de Janeiro Games in 2016, died Friday at her home in California. She was 23.
USA Cycling chief executive Rob DeMartini said in a statement Sunday that ”the entire cycling community is mourning this immense loss. We are offering continuous support to Kelly’s teammates, coaches and staff. We also encourage all those who knew Kelly to support each other through the grieving.”
Catlin’s father, Mark Catlin, told VeloNews that his daughter killed herself.
“There isn’t a minute that goes by that we don’t think of her and think of the wonderful life she could have lived,” Mark Catlin said. “There isn’t a second in which we wouldn’t freely give our lives in exchange for hers. The hurt is unbelievable.”
Catlin was born and raised near Minneapolis, Minnesota, and rose to prominence on the track as a member of the U.S. national team. She also raced on the road for the Rally UHC Pro Cycling Team, and she was pursuing a graduate degree in computational mathematics at Stanford.
