Shawn Barber, Canadian World Champion Pole Vaulter, Dead At Age 29
Shawn Barber, Canadian World Champion Pole Vaulter, Dead At Age 29
Canadian pole vault record holder Shawn Barber, the 2015 world champion, has died from medical complications. He was 29.
Canadian pole vault record holder Shawn Barber, the 2015 world champion, has died from medical complications. He was 29.
Barber died Wednesday at home in Kingwood, Texas, his agent, Paul Doyle, confirmed through Doyle Management Group social media.
No cause of death was announced but Barber had been dealing with health issues.
"More than just an incredible athlete, Shawn was such a good-hearted person that always put others ahead of himself," Doyle told the Associated Press. "It's tragic to lose such a good person at such a young age."
Barber rose to prominence as a pole vaulter beginning with his time at the University of Akron, where he won NCAA Indoor titles in 2014 and 2015, and the NCAA Outdoor title in 2015.
Later in 2015, Barber won gold at the Pan-Am Games and then the World Championships in Beijing.
Barber, whose PR of 6.00m/19-8.25 from the Pole Vault Summit in 2016 remains the Canadian national record, made the final of the 2016 Rio Olympics but finished 10th.
He last competed in during the 2020 indoor season, registering a fourth-place finish in Cottbus at 5.50m/18-0.5.
Barber is survived by his mother, Ann; father, George; and brother, David.
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