A man was accidentally killed at a high school track and field meet in Colorado on Sunday morning when a hammer weight thrown by a competitor cleared barriers and struck him, officials confirmed.
The unidentified spectator was at a meet at the University of Colorado in Colorado Springs when the hammer — a weight attached to a grip that is swung in a circular motion and then thrown — went into the crowd rather than the field around 9:30 a.m., the college said in a statement.
Local TV station KKTV reported that the man was the father of a competitor who attends a local high school, citing a statement from the Colorado United Track Club. That statement added that the rest of the meet was cancelled after the accident and the athletes were told to go home. NBC News has contacted the club for comment.
The college said the identity of the victim would be released by the El Paso County Coroner’s Office, which covers Colorado Springs.
“During a club sports track and field meet for high school students from across Colorado, taking place at the Mountain Lion Fieldhouse on the University of Colorado-Colorado Springs campus, a member of the attending audience was killed when a hammer thrown by a participant cleared certified barriers and struck him,” the university’s statement said.
Police and the the Colorado Springs Fire Department attended the scene and provided medical care, but then “ultimately pronounced the audience member dead at the scene.”
“We are heartbroken at this horrible accident and are focused on supporting all involved,” UCCS Chancellor Jennifer Sobanet said in the statement.
The track and field event was one of a three-meet series that began on Dec. 15 last year, each of which were held at the UCCS campus.
This article was originally published on NBCNews.com