Former French Olympic gymnast Gael Da Silva has passed away in a road accident.
The 41-year-old, who is nicknamed Gaou, leaves behind his wife, Camille, and three children: Hugo, 12, Jules, nine, and Lou, six.
His passing has left the gymnastics world in mourning after it was announced on Tuesday afternoon.
Da Silva’s career highlight came in 2012, when he claimed bronze in the European Championships in Montpellier in the floor exercise.
He also competed at London 2012 as part of the France team, which finished eighth in the men’s event.
As per French publication L’Equipe, Da Silva attended the French Team Championships in Amiens just days ago.
Former France Olympian Gael Da Silva (right) has passed away in a motor accident at the age of 41
Da Silva competed at the Olympics in London in 2012 and won bronze in the European Championships in the same year
In 2004, he was involved in a motorcycle accident and had to learn how to walk again after being hit by a car. He had multiple surgeries to fix his right leg, but managed to recover and return to competition.
‘My first stroke of luck was being knocked down by a firefighter who was able to prevent me from losing all my blood,’ he said at the time. ‘The second was that my mother convinced the surgeon to operate normally, inserting a pin in the femur rather than a prosthesis.
‘From my hospital bed, I saw the gym slipping away, but I didn’t want to stop there. Without it, I don’t know what I would have done with my life. That’s what motivated me to get out of there quickly.’
In his retirement, Da Silva had been working as a technical sales representative with Gymnova, while his son, Jules, is also an avid gymnast.
