Teenage kitefoiler JJ Rice dies a month before Olympics debut

June 17 (UPI) — Teenage kitefoiler Jackson James Rice, who was seeking to become the first Caucasian to represent Tonga at the Olympics, died in a diving accident last weekend.

Rice, 18, known as JJ, planned to compete in sailing at the Summer Olympics in Paris next month. He died on Saturday in Faleloa, on the Ha'apai group of islands, where his parents Darren and Nina Rice own Matafonua Island Lodge.

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His father told the Matangi Tonga newspaper that his son was freediving from a boat when he is suspected of suffering a power outage in shallow water.

He was born in the United States and moved to Tonga with his parents and younger sisters when he was around 3 years old.

“I was blessed to have the most incredible brother in the world and it pains me to say that he passed away,” Lily Rice, his sister, posted on Facebook. “I don't even know what to say. I don't know what to do or what to think. I miss JJ beyond belief.”

Rice earned a spot in the Summer Olympics last year by competing in the Sail Sydney kitefoil competition in Australia, where he finished in eighth place.

Kitefoil involves riders flying over water on hydrofoils attached to boards and propelled by huge kites. The sport is one of two new sailing disciplines that will debut at the Summer Olympics. They can reach speeds of 51 mph, according to the Royal Yachting Association.

He competed last month in the 2024 Formula Kite World Championships in Hyères, southern France.

“Now I begin the long journey home and can't wait to return to Tonga to see my family, friends and of course my beautiful training ground,” he posted on Facebook on May 25.

The International Kitesurfing Association posted a tribute on Facebook, saying “his passion soared as high as the kites he flew.”

Tongan athlete Pita Taufatofua, who was Tonga's shirtless flag bearer at the 2016 Rio Olympics, said he first met a young Rice after spotting him lying under a van, covered in oil engine. He was helping his father at the time, Taufatofua said on Facebook.

“In between times, he was doing what he loved – kitesurfing – in the oceans of Ha'apai, Taufatofua said. “Being self-taught as a child, he reached a level where he could compete at recent qualifiers Olympics in his quest to one day represent Tonga at the Olympic Games.

“He had great respect for the sea and for all the people of our little motu [island]. JJ left this world doing exactly what he loved, in a place he loved: the ocean.”