Steven Holcomb, the longtime U.S. bobsledding star who drove to three Olympic medals after beating a disease that nearly robbed him of his eyesight, was found dead in Lake Placid, N.Y., on Saturday.
He was 37.
The U.S. Olympic Committee and USA Bobsled and Skeleton announced the death of the 2010 gold medalist, the cause of which remains unclear. However, officials said there were no indications of foul play after a preliminary investigation at the Olympic Training Center where Holcomb was found in his room. An autopsy was scheduled for Sunday.
The native of Park City, Utah, was a three-time Olympian, and his signature moment came at the 2010 Vancouver Games when he piloted his four-man sled to a win that snapped a 62-year gold medal drought for the U.S. in bobsled’s signature race.
“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 and 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,” said Darrin Steele, the federation’s CEO.
Holcomb also drove to bronze medals in both two- and four-man events at the Sochi Games in 2014 and was expected to be part of the 2018 U.S. Olympic team headed to the Pyeongchang Games. He also was a former world champion in both two-man and four-man competition.
A disease called keratoconus had earlier caused Holcomb’s vision to degenerate to the point where he was convinced that his bobsled career was ending, but his eyesight was saved in surgery.