A FEMALE bodybuilding champion has suddenly died just days before she was set to take part in a top-level competition.
Brazilian Cintia Goldani, 36, from Rio Grande do Sul, reportedly died due to complications of a blood clot.
Her death on Wednesday was announced by to Musclecontest International, the company organising the event she was attending in July.
A pulmonary embolism can be caused by weightlifting and heavy exercise, but organisers said that in Cintia's case, it was caused by a recent bout of pneumonia.
Local media reports said the athlete was rushed to hospital but passed away.
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Goldani had only started her professional career in 2021 and was set to attend one of Brazil's biggest bodybuilding events.
Her final Instagram post on June 17 read: "We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, therefore, is not an act, but a habit."
Musclecontest International said in a statement: "With great pain and sadness, we hereby inform you of the death of Professional Figure Athlete Cintia Goldani due to complications from pneumonia.
"Cintia was an angel in human form. God needed reinforcement in heaven. She will never be forgotten by the MuscleContest family.
"Cintia was the presenter of the Figure category on our channel."
Goldani's death comes after Portuguese bodybuilder Marco Luis died aged 46 in Germany.
The muscleman, dubbed "Monster", had a massive following on social media - and worked as an online coach and motivator.
His wife confirmed the news in a Facebook post in April.
She said: " Yes, I can confirm that Marco has died in Cologne, Germany."
Marco, who hailed from the volcanic island of Terceira in the Azores archipelago, had nearly 25,000 followers on Instagram as well as his own YouTube channel where he used to post training videos.
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He called bodybuilding “his life and passion” on his other social media and had referred to himself online in the past as the “most shredded bodybuilder ever.”
On March 27, Brazilian influencer and powerlifting champion Rhayara Morais was discovered lifeless in her bed at her apartment in Aguas Claras.
Rhayara, who had nearly 150,000 followers on Instagram and boasted of having half a million fans on Tiktok, won a regional powerlifting title after taking up the sport around two years ago.
Brazilian Eustacio Batista Dias, 27, was shot dead after trying to escape his killers when they started firing at him as he chatted to another man between exercises.
The horror moment he was killed was captured on CCTV.
