Olympic bronze medalist and former Texas A&M athlete Deon Lendore was killed in a three-car accident Monday in Texas, returning home from practice. His car hit another head-on. Details of the collision were not released.
Lendore, 29, served as a volunteer assistant coach for the past two seasons while training professionally under contract with Puma, as reported in a Texas A&M press release.
The accomplished athlete competed for Texas A&M from 2012-2015. In 2014, he went undefeated through 14 races at 400m while claiming individual NCAA titles at the indoor and outdoor championships. Lendore also played a vital role in the 4x400m relays that claimed the NCAA outdoor title and swept the SEC Championships. Following his record-setting season, he was named Texas A&M’s first and only male winner of The Bowerman, which is awarded to the most outstanding collegiate track and field athlete. He was named Texas A&M’s Male Athlete of the Year in 2014 (tie) and 2015.
“Deon Lendore leaves an enormous legacy not only at Texas A&M, but on the world stage,” Director of Athletics Ross Bjork said. “It is an unthinkable tragedy and tremendous loss for the track and field community and for Aggies everywhere. He was a wonderful representative of Texas A&M Athletics both as a student-athlete and a volunteer coach, and we offer sincere condolences to Deon’s family, teammates and his friends.”
A native of Trinidad and Tobago, Lendore competed in the 2012, 2016 and 2020 Olympic Games claiming the bronze medal as he anchored the 4x400m relay at the London 2012 Olympics.
Lendore accumulated five world medals, including a gold as a member of the 4x400m relay at the IAAF World Relays in 2019. He earned his first world championship medal as a member of the 4x400m relay in 2015 before earning bronze in the 400m and 4x400m 2016 world indoor championships and bronze at the 2018 world indoor championships.
