U.S. gravel racer Moriah Wilson shot and killed in Austin, Texas
26-year-old recently won Life Time Fuego 80km at Sea Otter
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Life Time Gran Prix
In a tragic turn for the U.S. race scene, prominent gravel racer Moriah “Mo” Wilson was shot and killed in Austin Texas this week.
The incident took place late Wednesday night, May 11th. The shooting is being considered suspicious, reports CBS Austin.
Austin Police responded to a welfare check called in by Wilson’s roommate. When they arrived, they found an individual surrounded by blood with a gunshot wound. Wilson was pronounced dead at the scene. Police are ruling out suicide as a potential cause of death, and treating it as a suspicious death due to other evidence found in the home.
Austin Police did not release the identity of the victim, but VeloNews confirmed it was Wilson.
Wilson was preparing to start the Gravel Locos event on Saturday in Hico, Texas.
The U.S. rider has risen to prominence in the North American gravel scene with several big results over the last few years. In 2021, she was second at the iconic Leadville 100 marathon mountain bike race. Wilson started 2022 with a win at the Fuego 80k, the first event in the Life Time Grand Prix series, at Sea Otter one month ago. Several other wins, at Big Sugar Gravel and the Belgian Waffle Ride, cemented Wilson’s status as one of the top off-road racers in the country.
Online tributes to Wilson are pouring out from riders and race organizers from all corners of the U.S. race scene.
