Are these the most shocking deaths in sports history?

We often view sports people as larger-than-life characters with an infallibility not reserved for regular people. Perhaps this is why when there is a death in sport, it has such a huge impact. Here are some of the most shocking deaths in sports history.

The iconic Brazilian was the second driver to perish on this fateful weekend at Imola, with colleague  Roland Ratzenberger crashing during qualifying. Despite this, the race went ahead with Senna crashing headlong into a concrete barrier. Still beloved to this day, Senna’s legacy continues to flourish.

Ken Block was everyone's favorite rally driver and YouTube stunt driver, showcasing his incredible talent across multiple platforms before dying in a snowmobile in January 2023.  Block was driving his snowmobile down a slope before, "the snowmobile upended, landing on top of him," and he was pronounced dead at the scene, according to The New York Times.

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Adam Johnson was born in Grand Rapids, Minnesota, playing junior hockey before briefly ascending to the NHL. After a spell with the Pittsburgh Penguins, Johnson moved to Europe and eventually England where he played for the Nottingham Panthers. During a game in 2023, Johnson's neck was cut by an opposing players' skate and he bled to death, per AP News reporting.

Escobar was a Colombian footballer who scored an unfortunate goal during a World Cup match against the United States. Upon his return to Colombia, after a night out, Escobar was shot and killed by members of a drug cartel, with links to gambling losses after his own goal seen as a potential motive. 120,000 attended his funeral and fans still bring photos of him to matches to this day, per The India Times.

Aged just 25 when he was struck by a bouncer whilst batting for his adopted South Australia side, Phil Hughes had the cricketing world at his feet. With an enviable record in all forms of the game and only just entering his prime, his death left the cricketing world in shock with fans leaving their ‘bats out’ in tribute across the globe.

Following a storied NFL career that included 4 Pro Bowls and an MVP award, McNair was in retirement when he passed away. Fatally shot by his girlfriend at the time, McNair left behind four children who were in the home at the time of his murder. The Titans franchise McNair represented for most of his career wore ‘9’ stickers on their helmets throughout 2009 in tribute.

The Georgian luger was on his final practice run before the 2010 Winter Olympics in Whistler when his fatal crash occurred. His death was met with shock by athletes as they would have to compete on the same course days later. Despite considering withdrawing, the Georgian Olympic team decided to compete and "dedicate their efforts to their fallen comrade".

The basketball legend had been spending his retirement time training his daughter’s basketball side. It was all cut tragically short, however, on the 26th January 2020, when Bryant and his daughter Gianna were on their way to one of her games in a private helicopter along with friends and at least one teammate. The foggy conditions caused them to crash, killing all on board, with police blaming the pilot for the accident, per AP News. The basketball world was in shock with tributes pouring in from players and fans from around the world.

At just 22 years old, Len Bias, unfortunately, passed away in his college dorm room, celebrating with friends after his lifelong dream of being drafted into the NBA had been realized. Taken second overall in the 1986 draft by the Boston Celtics, Bias was on course for a great career. He collapsed in the early hours of the next morning after partying all night and couldn’t be resuscitated.

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Perhaps the most famous name in NASCAR, Earnhardt was a seven-time winner of the NASCAR Cup Series and was beloved by fans. His death came in a final lap crash at the Daytona 500 following a 27-year career in the sport. Fans would hold up three fingers during the final lap of races in memory of the great racer.

Nearing the end of a Confederation’s Cup match against Colombia, Foé collapsed in the center circle of the pitch. Despite medics performing nearly an hour of emergency CPR, he passed away shortly afterwards. His death was caused by a hereditary heart issue, per The Africa Report. Players from all nations would pay their respects for the young Cameroonian.

The All-American Pat Tillman was killed by friendly fire whilst fighting for his country in Afghanistan. Having left his NFL contract behind to join the military after the 9/11 attacks, Tillman was an interesting figure whose memory lives on with memorials at both his alma mater Arizona State, and at the Arizona Cardinals stadium.

A player whose death brought sweeping changes to his sport, Chapman was in the batter’s box facing Yankees pitcher, Carl Mays when he was struck in the head by a fastball. 12 hours later he was pronounced dead. Rules were changed to ensure balls remained clean and easy to see and batters would start to wear helmets from this point on. The New York Times in 1920 said there had been, " a tragic spell over the baseball fans of the city," following the incident.

Hughes remains the only NFL player to have ever died on the field. His death came aged 28 after suffering a heart attack whilst returning to the offensive huddle. The game continued with players only finding out about his death afterward. All players and coaches attended his funeral in San Antonio.

Sean Taylor was as talented as anyone to ever pull on shoulder pads and a helmet in the NFL. With the raw ability and athleticism paired with an unerring desire to improve, the sky was the limit. Shot and killed during a home invasion aged just 24, Taylor was memorialized by number ‘21’ stickers and moments of silence by every team across the league.

Probably every kid who picked up a cricket ball after the mid-90s will have uttered the phrase ‘bowling Shane’, mimicking the iconic line of wicketkeeper Adam Gilchrist, praising the transcendent Warne’s efforts with the ball. Passing away in March 2022 aged 52, Warne has a stand named after him at his beloved Melbourne Cricket Ground, a fitting tribute to perhaps the best cricketer ever.

Fernandez was steadily becoming one of the most dominant pitchers in the MLB when he crashed a boat at high speeds into a jetty in Miami. He and two other men were found deceased at the crash site. Also just 24, the Miami Marlins paid tribute with all players wearing his jersey for the next day’s game, which they would go on to win 7-3. NBC Miami reported, "Fernandez was legally drunk, had cocaine in his system," when the boat crashed.

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