Shawn Barber, the Canadian record holder and 2015 world champion in pole vault, died at the age of 29. Barber’s agent, Paul Doyle, confirmed to Reuters that he died of medical difficulties at his Kirkwood, Texas, home on Wednesday.
“More than just an incredible athlete, Shawn Barber was such a good-hearted person that always put others ahead of himself,” Doyle said on Thursday. “It’s tragic to lose such a good person at such a young age.”
Barber won gold at the 2015 Pan American Games, and weeks later, the then-21-year-old defeated a competition that included German silver medalist Raphael Holzdeppe and favorite Renaud Lavillenie, who won bronze, to win the global title in Beijing.
Barber’s best jump of 6.0 meters, accomplished on January 15, 2016, remains the Canadian record. He also competed in the Rio 2016
Olympic Games.
Shawn Barber began competing in pole vault at the age of seven, surpassing the U.S. high school record by more than a foot before capturing back-to-back NCAA indoor titles for the University of Akron in 2014 and 2015, followed by the 2015 NCAA outdoor championship.
The vaulter had dual citizenship because his father, George, his coach for the majority of his life, was born in Kincardine, northwest of Toronto. When he was initially named to the Canadian squad, he explained that he opted to compete for Canada to follow in his father’s footsteps.
Barber was survived by his father, mother Ann, and brother David.