Studies have shown that 1 out of 55,000 to 88,000 marathon finishers die during or after the race. Unfortunately, this occurred to three different individuals competing in the half marathon race of the Detroit Free Press/Flagstar Marathon this weekend. Temperatures were not out of the ordinary that day, floating around the 30s, and doctors do not know the exact causes for the deaths of these three men. Each of these three runners pasted away of apparent cardiac arrest; but all of the runners were people whom one would not think would have an issue with the strenuous conditions runners put on their body running long distances. One was a 26 year old that was active and enjoyed playing soccer who collapsed and died shortly after crossing the finish line. Daniel Langdon, 36, and Rick Brown, 65, both collapsed between mile 11 and 12 of the half marathon race. Our hearts go out to the family and friends of these individuals.
As runners we need to remember that we are not as invincible as we would like to think. Running is a gift that we should not take lightly. Please keep these three people in your heart and minds on your next long run.
For more information visit the Atlanta Journal Constitution news story.