Daniela Larreal Chirinos: The tragic death of a five-time Olympian

Daniela Larreal Chirinos, a former Olympian representing Venezuela, has died after reportedly choking on her food.

According to Fox Sports, the former Olympian was found deceased on the 16th of August after she was reported missing by her colleagues at a Las Vegas hotel for not showing up to work on the 12th of August.

Although the cause of death is yet to be confirmed, Fox News reported that police "concluded that the cause of death had been asphyxiation caused by solid food remains found in her trachea."

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The former cyclist was forced to leave Venezuela after becoming a vocal critic of the presidency of Nicolás Maduro, which she called a dictatorship. After becoming an advocate for democracy, she faced death threats and moved to the United States.

Larreal was a five-time Olympian, having competed at the 1992 Olympics in Barcelona, Atlanta in 1996, Sydney in 2000, Athens in 2004, and the London Olympics in 2012.

According to the People website, the Venezuelan velodrome cyclist's best finish at the Olympic Games was seventh in the Team Sprint final at London 2012.

Larreal was prepared to compete at the 2016 Olympics but complained to the government for not giving athletes their assigned funding. Her complaint led to threats from officials and the federation to confiscate her passport.

According to El Nuevo Herald, on one occasion, she was driving to visit her father and two trucks tried to force her off the road, but she evaded them.

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Larreal was the figurehead in Venezuelan track cycling between 1990 and 2012, winning various medals at the Pan American Games and Central American Games.

She won a silver medal at the 1990 Central American Games, two silver medals at the 2003 Pan American Games in the Dominican Republic, and three golds and a silver at the 2002 Central American Games in El Salvador.

The Venezuela Olympic Committee posted a tribute to Larreal on X on the 16th of August: "The COV Board of Directors regrets the departure of Daniela Larreal."

"With an outstanding career in track cycling, she managed to represent us with honour in five Olympic Games, accumulate four Olympic diplomas and triumphs that always filled us with great pride."

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