Commonwealth Games gold medallist Jarrod Bannister has died suddenly in the Netherlands aged 33, Athletics Australia has confirmed.
The two-time Olympian, who won gold at the 2010 Commonwealth Games in Delhi, had been living and training in Holland but Fairfax Media is reporting there are no suspicious circumstances surrounding his death Commonwealth Games gold medallist Jarrod Bannister has died suddenly in the Netherlands aged 33, Athletics Australia has confirmed.
The two-time Olympian, who won gold at the 2010 Commonwealth Games in Delhi, had been living and training in Holland but Fairfax Media is reporting there are no suspicious circumstances surrounding his death.
His personal best of 89.02m, set in Brisbane in 2008, is the current Australian record and he finished sixth in the final of the Beijing Olympics in the same year.
Athletics Australia said it was “saddened and shocked” by the news in a statement by chief executive Darren Gocher.
“On behalf of Athletics Australia, I extend our deepest condolences to Jarrod’s family and friends and urge the athletics fraternity to support each other at this difficult time,” he said.
Bannister’s last major competition came in the 2011 World Championships in South Korea where he finished seventh in the javelin final.
He was handed a 20-month ban in 2013 for missing three drugs tests, although he maintained testers had arrived at the hotel where he was staying only to be incorrectly told he had checked out the previous day.
