Elite Endurance Tri-Athlete Barbara Warren Dies After Biking Accident
Posted by Jason A. Hendricks on August 30, 2008 |
Barbara Warren, one of the world’s elite high endurance tri-athletes, has died following a recent biking accident at the Santa Barbara Triathlon. Barbara Warren was one-half of a famed twin sister combo that thrived on high endurance competitions in some of the most unusual and inhospitable environments in the world. She was 65 years old.
Barbara Warren won her age group at the 2003 Ironman World Triathlon Championships. She had competed in the Ironman Triathlon Championships 13 times, placing in the top 5 in eight of those outings.
Barbara Warren and her twin sister Angelika Drake successfully completed the 2,983 mile Race Across America in 10 hours. The two then teamed up to tackle a 7 day race across the Sahara Desert and a triple Ironman event in France. The Triple Ironman consists of a 7.2 mile swim, 336 mile bike ride, and a 78.6 mile run.
Barbara Warren’s death came as a result of an accident while biking in a stage of the Santa Barbara Triathlon. Barbara Warren had broken her neck, as a result of the accident, and was paralyzed from the neck down. She had to rely upon a ventilator to breath and was in very bad shape. Her family decided to take Barbara off the ventilator after she agreed, through nodding her head and blinking, that she was aware of the circumstances and did not want to continue in that manner. She passed away shortly thereafter with her sister lying next to her and her husband and kids in the room.
To me, this would have to be one of the toughest decisions in the world. The manner is a little controversial, yet, unless you are in that situation, it is very hard to say what you would do. Let’s keep Barbara’s family, friends, and associates in our prayers, as well as the thousands of athletes that she touched along the way. She was a very gifted athlete and died in a tragic way doing what she loved to do.
To read more about Barbara Warren, from a more personal standpoint, head over to Ironman.com.
[...] Original post by Jason A. Hendricks [...]
August 30th, 2008 at 2:14 am
Rough hit to be sure. Our hearts go out to all involved. However if any family can thrive in difficult times the Warren family most certianly can. The Warren twins are an example to all of the power of hard work.
August 30th, 2008 at 9:19 pm