Are female long distance runners more prone to suicide.

Lancermania

Lancermania

Lancers lead the way!
This month a female distance runners at NKU may have committed suicide based on what I have found out. In 1986, I became familiar with the story of Kathy Ormsby at NC State because she was a teammate of Connie Jo Robinson who ran for may club team while at Reading high school and later went to NC State to run for Rollie Geiger. Here is a disturbing story about this.

www.thedailybeast.com

Are Female Long-Distance Runners More Prone To Suicidal Depression?

For college cross-country champion Madison Holleran—like other female long-distance runners before her—the perfectionistic pressures of her sport may have pushed her to suicide.
www.thedailybeast.com

www.si.com

'And Then She Just Disappeared'

Kathy Love Ormsby, 21, a junior from North Carolina State, had set a U.S. collegiate women's record for 10,000 meters at the Penn Relays on April 24, and last
www.si.com www.si.com
 
Last edited:
 
suicides in general are up. I doubt long distance runners commit suicide at a high rate than the public
 
Very sad. I don’t think long distance running women are more prone to suicide than anyone else though.
 
I, like Lancermania, remember CJ Robinson very well. She was in a rival school of mine and a year ahead of me in school. I remember how driven she was as a runner, and when the story of her teammate Kathy Ormsby's attempted suicide at the NCAA championships in Indianapolis happened, it became very clear how intense that internal drive for "perfection" can be within the minds of some athletes. The obsessive-compulsive aspect of behaviors is too often overlooked by family & coaches. Given the strict nature of distance training and its physical toll on the body, it is vital to eat well-balanced meals and carry a healthy amount of fat tissue and avoid anorexia or other disorders that can crop up. Without proper nutrition, the OCD portion of driven female athletes can be allowed to run amok due to the brain not getting what it needs nutritionally speaking.

This sad story of Maddy brings all those memories back and I pray that her family & friends are granted God's peace in their hearts. I also hope it is illustrative to others in driven professions to take serious stock of one's overall physical & mental well-being. Sadly, things like this can be easily missed until it is too late.
 
As a rule, males are more likely to commit suicide than females by almost 2-1. Among Olympians who've taken their own life it's even more stark - 110-10 male.
 
lane4 said:
As a rule, males are more likely to commit suicide than females by almost 2-1. Among Olympians who've taken their own life it's even more stark - 110-10 male.
Click to expand...

Wow, that is sad. The only one I'm personally familiar with is Pierre Quinon, 1984 OG pole vault champion from France. He was a surprise winner, but evidently had a lot of issues several decades later. He was only 22 when he won gold in LA. Only 49 when he committed suicide.

en.wikipedia.org

Pierre Quinon - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org en.wikipedia.org
 
lane4 said:
As a rule, males are more likely to commit suicide than females by almost 2-1. Among Olympians who've taken their own life it's even more stark - 110-10 male.
Click to expand...

I am too lazy to pull the current, relevant research, but I'm pretty sure males are more successful at committing suicide but females attempt suicide more often. I've heard researchers attribute that to the fact that males are, statistically, willing to use more lethal means, possibly due to them being more aggressive by nature.

Male or female, suicide is a heartbreaking epidemic. My heart breaks for the friends and families.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top