Athlete Dies At Ironman New York

After seven years of planning, the New York area’s first Ironman triathlon was marred by the death of a 43-year-old male competitor.

“It’s really a shame,” John Korff, local organizer of the Aug. 11 Ironman U.S. Championship, said yesterday in a telephone interview. “It’s very sad. It pains you as an organizer. It gets you in your gut on a very personal level.”

The South China Morning Post identified the competitor who died as Andy Naylor, who had been a member of the Hong Kong Police Force since 1992. He’s survived by his wife and three daughters, the newspaper said, and the family plans to hold a funeral in Britain followed by a memorial in Hong Kong. An accomplished long-distance runner, Naylor a week ago won a long- distance kayak race, the paper said.

The Hong Kong Police Force said in a statement that a 43- year-old officer died while competing in a sporting event in New York while on leave. The officer wasn’t identified in the statement, which said the HKPF is “deeply grieved.”

FILED UNDER: News TAGS: Andy Naylor / competitor / Death / Ironman / New York