Shavez Hart, Olympic and World Championship Sprinter, Dead at 29
Shavez Hart, an Olympic and World Championship sprinter who also competed at Texas A&M, died on Saturday after being shot and killed at a nightclub in the Bahamas, according to TMZ Sports. He was 29 years old. Hart allegedly was trying to break up a fight before he was shot. The incident happened in Mount Hope, North Abaco early Saturday morning.
The police report says a group of males got into an altercation in the parking lot when one man with a gun opened fire and hit Hart in the chest. Hart was transported to the Marsh Harbour Clinic where he was pronounced dead. He was set to turn 30 years old on Tuesday.
Sad day for the Bahamian sporting community. Bahamian Olympic sprinter Shavez Hart was shot and killed overnight in Abaco.
— Amajahl Knowles (@3AM__MO) September 3, 2022
Hart had a decorated career that included being apart of the Bahamas’ silver medal winning team at the 2016 World Indoor Championships. pic.twitter.com/wDCGfQDgYS
Hart was known for excelling in the 100-meter dash as he's the third fastest Bahamian sprinter of all time in the event. He won the silver medal in the 4x400 meter relay in the 2016 Indoor World Championship and won a gold medal in the same event in the CAC Championships in 2013. Hart competed in the 100-meter dash and 200-meter dash at the 2016 Olympics in Rio.
"This is so tragic. Shavez Hart was of course one of our finest athletes ever, but he was one of the kindest people I have met, and such a soft-spoken man," Texas A&M head coach Pat Henry said. "Words can't describe the loss that the Aggie track & field family is feeling. My thoughts and prayers are with his family." Hart competed for Texas A&M from 2013 to 2015 and ended his career as a 10-time All-American. In 2015, Hart won a gold medal at the NCAA Indoor Championships finishing first in the 4x400-meter relay.
"It is with great sadness that I join in the sporting fraternity in expressing heartfelt condolences to the family of the late Shavez Hart, Olympian…. The Ministry of Youth, Sports and Culture also extends heartfelt condolences to the executive branch of the Bahamas Association of Athletic Associations (BAAA), all other members of the organization, and persons within the sporting community," Mario Bowleg, Minister of Youth Sports, and Culture. said in a statement, per The Nassau Guardian. "As minister, I pray for healing and comfort for the family of the bereaved during this difficult time. May his soul rest in peace."