More than 30,000 participants ran in the San Antonio Rock 'n' Roll Marathon Series this weekend, but the event ended in tragedy after a 32-year-old runner died just moments after crossing the finish line.
Jorge Fernandez collapsed at about 9:45 a.m. after completing the half-marathon on Sunday, the San Antonio Express-News reports.
Fernandez served two tours in Iraq as a staff sergeant in the Air Force and was working as a nurse at University Hospital.
There's no word on what could have caused the experienced runner's sudden death, but the News-Express points out that temperatures, reportedly reaching the lower 80s, gave other participants difficulty during and after the race.
Sally Rios, vice-president of a San Antonio running club told KENS-5 that many things could have contributed to Fernandez's death.
"He could have had an underlying heart problem. He could've under-trained. Maybe he over-trained and over-exerted himself," she said. "Maybe he didn't take enough water."
But Fernandez' neighbor told KSAT that the Iraq veteran seemed perfectly healthy.
"It's hard enough when someone is sick and you are prepared for it," Laura Wilson told the station. "But, whenever something like this happens, you can't prepare for something like that."
This is the first death in the history of the San Antonio race. Proceeds from the event benefited the Susan G. Komen Foundation for cancer research.
Correction: The fatality was the first death in the history of the San Antonio event, not of the Rock 'n' Roll Marathon Series.