Chris Spielman, a former NFL linebacker, gave up playing football to aid in his wife Stefanie Spielman’s fight against breast cancer. She died today at the age of 42. Read more below.
Chris is the type of guy who always shied away from taking credit for his heroic actions to help prevent breast cancer. Rather, he always just let his actions speak for them self, and they do.
Justin Levens, a Mixed Martial Arts Fighter, was found dead in his Laguna Niguel, California home along with his wife, Sarah McLean-Levens. See photos, video and read a biography of Justin Levens here.
MMA fighter Justin Levens and his wife, Sarah McLean-Levens, were found dead in their Laguna Niguel, California home from apparent gunshot wounds. Investigators are currently ruling their deaths as possibly a murder/suicide.
The two were found in their home by McLean-Levens’ mother, who in turn called 911.
As a biography, Justin Levens was born on April 18, 1980 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, so his age was 28 when he died.
Levens grew up in Philadelphia, but later moved to Newport Beach, California. He fought in the WEC (World Extreme Cagefighting), and was undefeated in his first seven bouts. He later went to the now defunct IFL and became a member of the Southern California Condors, training under the tutelage of Marco Ruas.
Levens had a 9-8 MMA record - 7 by knockout and 2 by submission.
See more photos and video of Justin Levens below.
Stevie Hicks, a former Iowa State football player, was found dead earlier today in downtown Omaha, Nebraska. Read the rest of the story plus video and a biography of Stevie Hicks below.
The 25-year-old former Creighton Prep standout was found dead around 8:30 AM under the I-480 and North Freeway interchange bridges. Cause of death is not known at this time. Local police are not releasing any other details surrounding his death. An autopsy has been scheduled.
Our hearts and prayers go out to the Hicks family during this difficult time.
As a biography, Stevie Hicks was born on June 29, 1983 in Tacoma, Washington., so his age was 25 at the time of his death.
He attended Creighton Prep in Omaha, Nebraska, where he was a member of The World-Herald’s All Nebraska team. His junior year saw him rush for 1,220 yards and score 14 touchdowns. His senior year he had 17 touchdowns and ran for 1,818 yards.
He went on to Iowa State University, and in his career there rushed for 2,601 yards and scored 11 touchdowns. He led the team in rushing every year while there.
See video of Stevie Hicks below.
Meet Amanda Jo Earhart-Savell, the girlfriend of convicted steroid dealer David Jacobs. She and Jacobs were found dead Thursday morning at his home in Plano, Texas. See photos, video and a biography of Amanda Jo here.
Amanda Jo Earhart-Savell and David Jacobs, her on again/off again boyfriend, were found dead earlier today at his home in Plano, Texas. Details regarding their deaths are sketchy, but apparently Amanda died of a gunshot wound to the head. The police are not confirming information about the cause of their deaths, but according to several online reports, it appears that it was a murder/suicide.
Jacobs was accused of selling steroids to several NFL players and had given names of those players to security officials in the NFL. He was convicted and sentenced last month and received three years probation for running an “international steroids ring”.
As a biography, Amanda Jo Earhart-Savell was born in Nashville, Tennessee on January 26, 1978. Amanda was 30 years old at the time of her death. She attended Tom Howard Academy and went to Texas Tech on a tennis scholarship.
When Amanda was younger, her father owned several gyms and worked out often in the weight room while she played tennis. Her sister was involved with supplement company Dymatize and that is when Amanda realized she wanted to try her hand at fitness competitions. She went on to become an IFBB professional figure competitor.
Some of her competitions include:
2005 Tournament of Champions - 2nd place
2005 Europa Super Show - Overall Champion -Qualified for IFBB Figure Olympia
2005 New York Pro Figure - 7th
2005 USA’s 1st in E Class - Pro Qualifier
2005 Emerald Cup 1st in E class
2005 Orange County Figure Championship’s in class C and Overall Champion
2006 Europa Super Show - 2nd place
2007 Figure International - 2nd place
More photos and video of Amanda Jo Earhart-Savell below.
Vancouver Canucks rookie Luc Bourdon was killed in a motorcycle accident Thursday. See photos, video and a biography of Luc below.
Luc Bourdon was killed Thursday when his motorcycle hit a tractor-trailer near his family’s home of Shippagan, New Brunswick. A Shippagan police report said that Bourdon had lost control of his motorcycle before he struck the tractor trailer. Police still would not confirm the identity of the victim, but Bourdon’s sister, Eve Bourdon, has confirmed his death. His agent, Kent Hughes, said:
“Luc was a winner; he was a competitor,” said Kent Hughes, his agent. “There was no quit in him. He persevered through a lot. He was a great guy and a great teammate.”
As a biography, Luc Bourdon was born on February 16, 1987 in Shippagan, New Brunswick, Canada. He was 21 years old.
He played in the QMJHL (Quebec Major Junior Hockey League) for the Val-d’Or Foreurs, the Moncton Wildcats, and the Cape Breton Screaming Eagles.
In 2005, Bourdon was drafted by the Vancouver Canucks in the first round, 10th overall. During this last season, he played for the Canucks and the Manitoba Moose of the AHL.
Bourdon was part of the Canadian team that won gold at the 2007 world junior hockey championship in Vancouver. They also won another gold at the 2007 tournament in Sweden.
More photos and video of Luc Bourdon are below.
Meet Daniela Klemenschits, the Austrian tennis player who battled stomach cancer along with her doubles partner and twin sister Sandra. See her photos, biography, and special video here.
Our hearts go out to her family and fans of the tennis twins everywhere. She died on April 9th 2008 at the age of only 25 years old.
As a biography, the Klemenschits twins were born November 13 1982 in Austria.
When other players learned that their medical attention was costing $3,000 Euros per month, many women tennis players and fans made donation rushed to try and save them. A charity auction was created which included such notables as Justine Henin, Amélie Mauresmo, Martina Hingis, Ana Ivanovic, and Daniela Hantuchova. The good news is that Sandra is reportedly recovering.
As a tennis player, Daniela is best known for pairing with her twin sister Sandra Klemenschits in doubles matches. In 2005 the Klemenschits sisters reached the Istanbul finals, Stockholm semifinals and Budapest semifinals while their peak ranking was 95th in the world during August that year. In all they won 20 titles on the ITF Women’s Tennis circuit.
They retired from tennis after the diagnosis in January 2007.
See more pictures below and a video below.
Heath Benedict, a former Newberry College offensive lineman and top NFL draft prospect, was found dead in his home Wednesday night. See photos and a biography of Heath below.
Heath Benedict, 24, was living in Jacksonville, Florida, where he was training for the upcoming NFL draft. Heath received a football scholarship to Tennessee, but the 6 foot 5, 330 pounder was unhappy there and was convinced by Newberry College to sign with them. He soon became a Division II All-American.
“Right now, we’re all just trying to figure out what to do,? said Newberry College assistant football coach Ike Allred. “Obviously, we’re all just praying for Heath and his family at this time.?
Heath was invited to last month’s NFL combine, and was projected to be picked in the third round.
Police in Jacksonville do not suspect foul play, alcohol or drugs. Cause of death is still unknown.
As a biography, Heath Benedict was born on June 30, 1983. He was 24 years old at the time of his death. He was born in Tilburg, Netherlands and attended Peddie High School in Highstown, New Jersey. While there, he was named a Parade All-American and even participated in the U.S. Army All-American Bowl. He received a football scholarship to Tennessee, but moved on to Newberry College in Newberry, South Carolina.
While at Newberry, he garnered several Division II All-America honors in his sophomore, junior and senior seasons.
He was excited to move on to the NFL…he was quoted as saying recently:
“Newberry’s a great school. I really enjoyed my four years there and now I have the opportunity to come from there to the NFL. Everyone back there is just excited about the whole process. They’re behind me, 200 percent, all rooting. I’m always going to be grateful for the opportunity they gave me. I’ll always be a Newberry Indian.?
A Memorial service for Heath will be held Tuesday, April 1, in Wiles Chapel at Newberry College.
More photos of Heath Benedict can be found below.
