Who was Rylan Schadegg? Tributes pour in as endurance coach and top athlete passes away

Well-known athlete Rylan Schadegg recently passed away. The heartbreaking news was revealed through his Instagram handle on September 11, 2025, with a photo that was seemingly captured at a sports event.

According to Fit Kit UK, Schadegg aimed to establish himself in the world of HYROX after emerging as a DEKAFIT World Champion three times.

He was also supposed to participate in the HYROX World Championship this year, along with other athletes like Lauren Weeks.

The tribute post on social media by his family members stated that Rylan Schadegg died on Sunday, September 7, in the evening hours.

The statement says that the endurance coach continued running up the mountains and coming down like he always did over the years until the time he passed away.

“Those of you that know Rylan, know that his faith in Christ and his resulting love for others characterized the way he lived life. He was a son, brother, friend, and mentor to many who will miss his smile, his friendship, and his own unique brand of humble competitive drive”, the post says.

The family additionally requested privacy from the general public, saying they need time to process everything that has happened.

They also wrote that Schadegg’s faith was an important part of his life over the years and added:

“We pray that his love for Jesus and his example will be a reminder for us to always pursue Jesus and live life with everything you have.”

People even paid tribute to Rylan in the comments section of the post, recalling the moments they spent with him over the years.

While a user described Schadegg as one of the most wonderful human beings, another person said that Rylan changed her life.

Netizens also wrote that he will be missed by everyone, with a user saying that he inspired many people.

Rylan Schadegg won various competitions

According to Mudgear, Rylan was born in Lincoln, Nebraska, and spent most of his time in northern Utah. His biography on Instagram stated that he helped people train themselves for hybrid and endurance sports.

Notably, Rylan Schadegg participated in multiple competitions, including the Hyrox Chicago, where he came second.

However, his finishing time was reported to be 55:46 in the same competition, and it was considered the third-fastest time in history, as per the Hybrid Letter.

While speaking to the outlet around two years ago, Schadegg said that he was interested in sports since his childhood and even started mountain biking before he turned 18.

However, he could not make it to the national cross-country mountain biking team for the USA.

Rylan said that he later decided to lose weight and got a job after finishing his “first fire academy.” He recalled the experience by saying:

“I started my career and really loved it. So, workouts for firefighting are very similar to what a hybrid race is like. They do a heavy lift, and then they’ll do something aerobic. Because you should be able to do both. There’s many people who are unfit in the fire service, but the good ones are very aerobically fit and also very powerful.”

Rylan Schadegg confirmed that he was not working as a firefighter anymore. He opened up a little bit more about his athletic career, stating that he participated in his first Spartan race around four years ago, followed by Trifecta Worlds.

Rylan also disclosed that anger and gratitude help him to put more effort towards the end of any race.

The Hybrid Letter stated that Rylan won the Spartan Trifecta World Championship and the Hyrox race in Valencia, Spain.

He additionally kept in touch with everyone through Instagram, where he was active with around 15,000 followers.