Celebrity News January 19, 2024
Olympian Shawn Barber Dead at 29
Getty Images
Shawn Barber, an Olympic pole vaulter from Canada, has died at just 29.
His agent Paul Doyle told the Associated Press that Barber died at home in Kingwood, Texas, on January 17 from “medical complications.”
No cause of death was given.
"More than just an incredible athlete, Shawn was such a good-hearted person that always put others ahead of himself," Doyle told the wire service. "It's tragic to lose such a good person at such a young age."
Barber was a top athlete at the University of Akron, winning NCAA indoor championships in 2014 and 2015, and the 2015 outdoor championship.
His star continued to rise in 2015 as he took home gold at the Pan-Am Games and the World Championships in Beijing .
Shawn went on to compete in the Olympics in Rio de Janeiro in 2016 where he made it to the finals.
Barber holds Canada’s national record holder in pole vaulting, reaching a height of 19 feet, 8 ¼ inches in Reno, Nevada, in 2016.
