Dave Mirra, whose perilous feats on a BMX bike led to 24 medals at ESPN’s X-Games and helped make freestyle BMX a big-money spectacle, was found dead on Thursday night in Greenville, N.C. He was 41.
The Greenville police said Mirra died from what appeared to be a self-inflicted gunshot. His body was discovered in his truck in the driveway of a friend’s house, where he had been visiting, they said.
Freestyle BMX riders perform tricks on lightweight bicycles on the ground, on ramps and rails and while soaring through the air. Mirra rode with an aggressive but fluid style that made the most difficult maneuvers appear effortless.