Tori Bowie: Pregnant US Olympic sprinter’s cause of death revealed

US athlete was found dead in Florida after police carried out welfare check

Former US Olympic sprinter Tori Bowie died at home from childbirth complications, according to an autopsy report.

Bowie, 32, was discovered dead at her home in Florida on 2 May after authorities carried out a welfare check on the former 100-metre world champion athlete.

The Orange County (Florida) Medical Examiner’s Office report states that Bowie was around eight months pregnant and in active labour when she died, reported ESPN.

Tori Bowie crosses the finishline to win the Women's 4 x 100m Relay Final on Day 14 of the Rio 2016 Olympic Games at the Olympic Stadium on August 19, 2016 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil (Getty Images)

Medical officials said that the athlete suffered possible complications that included eclampsia and respiratory distress, according to USA Today.

Eclampsia is when a person suffers seizures after a sudden spike in blood pressure during the late stages of pregnancy, states The Cleveland Clinic.

Bowie’s death was through natural causes, according to the medical examiner.

Tori Bowie attends the Sports Illustrated Fashionable 50 on July 12, 2018 in West Hollywood, California (Getty Images)

Orange County Sheriff deputies carried out the welfare check last month when they were alerted that Bowie “had not been seen or heard from in several days.”

“We’ve lost a client, dear friend, daughter and sister,” Icon Management Inc., the agency that represented Bowie, wrote on Twitter. “Tori was a champion…a beacon of light that shined so bright! We’re truly heartbroken and our prayers are with the family and friends.”

At the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, Bowie won a silver medal in the 100-metres and bronze in the 200-metres. She also won gold running the anchor leg in the women’s 4x100 relay.

In 2017 she won gold at the world championships in the women’s 100-metres and 4x100 relay.