Angela Madsen, a three-time Paralympian and U.S. Marine veteran, has died on a solo rowing expedition across the Pacific Ocean, according to her wife. Madsen set off from Marina Del Ray, California, in April with the goal of arriving at the Hawaii Yacht Club, in Honolulu, within four months. She was hoping to become the first paraplegic, first openly gay athlete, and oldest woman to row across the Pacific Ocean. Deb Madsen, the rower’s wife, said she suspected something was wrong when Angela stopped replying to messages over the weekend. “With extreme sadness,” Madsen wrote Tuesday, “I must announce that Angela Madsen will not complete her solo row to Hawaii.” It’s not known exactly how Angela died. She competed in the Paralympics three times, winning bronze in rowing and shot put, and was the first woman with a disability to twice row the Atlantic. She’s mentioned six times in the Guinness Book of World Records.
