Three time World Champ Andy Irons passes away

Andy Irons, Jeffreys Bay : photo ASP/Cestari

Passages

Irons passed away from illness-related complications while en route back to Kauai

, 2 November, 2010 : – - Andy Irons (HAW), 32, three-time ASP World Champion, passed away today en-route from Puerto Rico back home to Kauai from complications due to illness. Official Irons Family Statement: The world of surfing mourns an incredibly sad loss today with the news that Hawaii’s Andy Irons has died. Andy was a beloved husband, and a true champion.

Irons, 32, withdrew from a professional surfing event in Puerto Rico last weekend due to illness, and passed away during a layover en-route to his home in Kauai, Hawaii. He had reportedly been battling with Dengue Fever, a viral disease.

At this time the family thanks his friends and fans for their support, and asks that the community respect its privacy. The family also asks to not be contacted so their focus can remain on one another during this time of profound loss.

Irons, who began his career with the elite ASP World Tour in 1998, went on to collect 20 elite tour victories, four Triple Crown of Surfing Titles, three consecutive ASP World Titles and change the sport forever with his unparalleled ability and comprehensive approach to surfing.

The thoughts and sympathies of the ASP family go out to the Irons family as the entire sporting world mourns this tragedy.

Andy Irons wins the Billabong Pro Tahiti : photo ASP/Robertson

Fox Sports Reports: Former three-time world surfing champion Andy Irons has died

Phil Irons, the father of the 32-year-old surfer, confirmed his son’s death Tuesday. The cause of death was not immediately known, but a family statement released through The Association of Surfing Professionals said Irons died as a result of complications due to illness, possibly dengue fever.

Irons was found dead in a hotel room in Dallas, where he was on a layover en route to his home on Kauai. He was returning from Puerto Rico, where he was to have competed in the 2010 Rip Curl Pro Search.

Employees at the Grant Hyatt Hotel DFW Airport found the body and called Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport police at 9:44 a.m. Public Safety officials said the man had checked in Monday and had died of unknown causes. The Tarrant County Medical Examiner will perform an autopsy Wednesday to determine the cause of death.

Family members from Kauai were headed to Dallas late Tuesday. Irons was expected to compete against two Australian surfers in his first heat Saturday but didn’t show up, much to the confusion of commentators. Rip Curl officials said Irons withdrew Sunday, citing an illness he contracted during an event in Portugal.

Andy Irons : photo ASP Covered Images

Irons was scheduled to compete in the Vans Triple Crown of Surfing in Hawaii, which is scheduled to begin next week.

“The thing that I think many of us appreciated the most about Andy was that he was an incredibly real person,” Vans Triple Crown of Surfing spokeswoman Jodi Wilmott said. “Where a lot of champions in sports and celebrities become very guarded and you just wonder sometimes if you’re really seeing who they are, you’ve got Andy Irons 100 percent of the time.”

Wilmott said Irons was a passionate person and an incredibly competitive athlete. “He reveled in competition and in stepping up to the plate, and I think that’s something in sport that anybody can admire,” she said.

The Irons family in a statement thanked the surfer’s friends and fans and requested privacy “so their focus can remain on one another during this time of profound loss.” Read the full article on Fox Sports

Andy Irons, Tahiti : photo Steve Robertson

Dengue Fever

The news shocked and saddened the surfing world and made clear the danger posed by a disease that is nearly unheard of in the states.

Symptoms include high fevers, rashes, headaches and fatigue. It is rarely deadly and usually goes away on its own after a week. But a related disease, dengue hemorrhagic fever, is very dangerous. Victims can go into a shock-like state and spots of blood appear on and under the skin. Doctors can only treat the symptoms, not the underlying virus. If patients survive the early shock, they typically survive.

From news reports, it is not yet clear what form of dengue fever Irons had or what complications caused his death