The best surfer in El Salvador, who was preparing for the sport’s Olympic debut this summer, was struck and killed by lightning during a training session.
“We were left with a great athlete who represented our country,” said the Salvadoran Surf Federation in a post that honors Katherine Diaz on social networks. “See you soon, great warrior. El Salvador is in mourning ”.
The 22-year-old went into the water to start training on Friday near her home in El Tunco when she was hit. The emergency services tried to revive her on the beach, but the attempts were unsuccessful. The Spanish newspaper AS reported that a sudden change in weather took people on the beach by surprise: “the sky was clear and it was an unforeseen storm that also did not seem to have much electrical intensity”.
The International Surfing Association paid tribute to Diaz in a Facebook post.
“It is with a heavy heart that ISA learned of the death of Katherine Diaz from El Salvador,” says the statement. “Katherine has incorporated the joy and energy that make surfing so special and loved by all of us, as a global sport ambassador.”
Diaz was preparing for the ISA World Surf Games in May in El Salvador, which will act as a qualification for the Tokyo Olympics.