“RIP My Friend”: Mondo Duplantis Joins the World to Mourn the Untimely Loss of Olympian Pole Vaulter Shawn Barber

Dark clouds have gathered over the track and field world as the first bad news of 2024 has shaken the pole-vaulting community. The world is mourning the loss of one of the highly performing 29-year-old Olympians. The Canadian athlete with expertise in pole vault took his last breaths at a very young age devastating everyone around him. The pole vault king Mondo Duplantis was seen disheartened with this great loss just ahead of the track and field season.

Among others, pole vault king Mondo Duplantis was seen mourning the loss of Shawnacy ‘Shawn’ Campbell Barber, a standout pole vaulter at the University of Akron.

Mondo Duplantis mourns the loss of fellow pole vaulter 

Shawn Barber passed away at his home on the 17th of January 2024, in Kingwood, Texas. In the wake of it, Mondo Duplantis took to his Instagram to mourn the loss of his friend. He re-posted a post on his Instagram stories that read “Shawn Barber, 1994-2024”. In this post, Duplantis expressed his grief by stating, “RIP my friend”.  

Shawn’s demise was confirmed by his agent, Paul Doyle and the reason behind his death is still unknown. Only the fact that the Olympian was suffering from some health issues has come to light. Doyle expressed, “More than just an incredible athlete, Shawn was such a good-hearted person that always put others ahead of himself”.

He further added, “It’s tragic to lose such a good person at such a young age”. Barber has made his place in millions of hearts and the track and field world with his exceptional moves and achievements. Shawn Barber was a standout athlete at the University of Akron. Here this prodigy nabbed consecutive NCAA indoor championships in 2014 and 2015 and has also represented his country at the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympics. It was an extremely tough time for all his fans and friends as they have poured their condolences. 

Internet mourns for Shawn Barber

The track and field have amassed to mourn the loss of Canadian prodigy. This was an extremely saddening news for the entire sports community and all the admirers of Shawn Barber. It was quite evident in the heartfelt comments they left for the athlete. One of his fans praising his wins commented, “That’s so sad to hear. He was such a good vaulter and so young to win the world title. RIP”. 

Read more: Sha’Carri Richardson Hops on Best Friend Duties to Support Mondo Duplantis’ Iconic Event

Adding to this, the Fillipino Olympian pole vaulter EJ Obeina commented, “One of the nicest guy in the circuit. Rest in peace”. Reminiscing the good times with Shawn, a French pole vaulter stated, “Will never forget all the good time we had with Shawn on track and out of stadium … a true nice guy, rest in peace my friend “. Along similar lines, another fan of the Olympian added, “This is so sad”. Another one of his admirers expressed, “Condolences to his family”. The demise of such a talented soul is a great loss to the pole vaulting world.

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