24-year-old woman dies after collapsing in final stages of New York City Marathon
Runner was former college athlete in ‘perfect shape’
TL;DR
- Rachel Apa, a 24-year-old woman, died after collapsing near the end of the New York City Marathon.
- She was running in honor of her grandfather who had Parkinson's disease.
- Her father described her as being in "perfect health, perfect shape" and a former college field hockey player.
- Apa experienced increasing pain via text messages to her father before collapsing.
- She received CPR and defibrillator treatment on site before being taken to the hospital where she died.
- Her father stated the cause of death was rhabdomyolysis, a rare condition triggered by heavy exercise.
- This is the first participant death from a medical incident in the race since 2024.