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Handsome and tall former U.S. figure skater John Coughlin died in Kansas City on Friday, according to his sister Angela Laune. He was 33.
“My wonderful, strong, amazingly compassionate brother John Coughlin took his own life earlier today,” Laune wrote on Facebook. “I have no words.”
The Kansas City Police Department has not yet issued a police report, but Sergeant Jake Becchina confirmed to PEOPLE that officers were dispatched to the 10900 block of Washington Street on Friday at approximately 4:54 p.m. in response to an apparent death by suicide. Becchina confirmed that the deceased was identified as John Coughlin of Kansas City.
Coughlin was a two-time U.S. Pairs Champion and worked as a coach, TV commentator and skater with U.S. Figure Skating and the International Skating Union. He participated in two world championships, placing sixth in 2011 and eighth in 2012.
According to USA Today, on Dec. 17, SafeSport — an organization that has “exclusive jurisdiction over sexual misconduct” in the Olympic loop and investigates other abuse allegations across multiple sports — restricted Coughlin’s eligibility to participate in figure skating pending final resolution of a matter presented to them. On Jan. 8, Coughlin resigned from his post as U.S. brand manager for John Wilson Blades, a skating blade retail company.
