The cause of U.S. Olympic bobsledder Steven Holcomb’s death will remain unclear until more tests are completed.
An autopsy performed at Adirondack Medical Center in Saranac Lake, New York, showed that the 37-year-old Holcomb died with fluid in his lungs, Essex County coroner Francis Whitelaw said Sunday. However, that alone was not enough to draw a conclusion as to why Holcomb died – and no determination will come until toxicology tests are completed.
That process can typically take several weeks.
Whitelaw said preliminary toxicology results did not show drugs in Holcomb’s system. Whitelaw also said there is “no suspicion of foul play,” concurring with what USA Bobsled and Skeleton and the U.S. Olympic Committee said shortly after Holcomb’s body was discovered Saturday afternoon in his room at the Olympic Training Center – where many athletes reside when they are training or competing in Lake Placid.
Holcomb was a three-time Olympian and three-time Olympic medalist, including a four-man gold medal from the 2010 Vancouver Games.