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The New Zealand cycling federation has assured this Tuesday that it will review its support for the mental health of athletes. He has done so after knowing

the sudden death of Olympian Olivia Podmore at the age of 24

. Podmore competed in the Rio 2016 Olympics and the 2018 Commonwealth Games, but has not been part of the New Zealand team at the recent Tokyo Games.

A spokesman for the New Zealand Police explained that on Monday afternoon they had been notified of a sudden death at a property in Waikato, New Zealand's North Island.

Podmore's cause of death has not been confirmed, but a friend has raised concerns about the cyclist's mental health and

sports officials have said he had contacted support services offered to athletes

.

"At this time to try to focus on the well-being of the people who are here and coping with this loss," Cycling New Zealand CEO Jacques Landry said at a press conference.

"There will be a time for us to review and see if and where we could not act correctly."

Former Olympic rowing champion Eric Murray, a friend of Podmore's, said he was with her Monday and described her death as a "shock and a tragedy." "I wish I had said something," the 39-year-old athlete told reporters in Cambridge, a New Zealand high-performance center for cycling and other sports.

"We have lost a sister, a friend and a fighter who lost that will to fight within her. If you had seen her in the last 72 hours, you would not have thought that this could happen. That is why there is so much talk about mental health in this moment, "he

added.

Athletes' mental health has attracted attention since Japanese tennis player

Naomi Osaka

withdrew from the French Open.

And just a few days ago, the American

Simone Biles

she gave up most of her gymnastics tryouts in Tokyo.

New Zealand media have reported that Podmore had recently described the pressures of elite sport in a post on his social media. According to Stuff, the text published by Podmore said: "Sport is an amazing outlet for many people, it is a fight, it is a very joyous fight. The feeling when you win is different from any other, but the feeling when you lose, when They do not select you, when you do not meet the expectations of society, such as owning a house, getting married, having children, all because you try to give yourself up for your sport is also different from any other ".

Podmore's brother Mitchell has written in a Facebook post: "Rest in peace with my beautiful sister and Phil Podmore's beloved daughter. You will be in our hearts forever."

And the director of the New Zealand High Performance Program, Raelene Castle, has said that the support for athletes in the programs was not perfect.

"His legacy has to be that we make improvements," he told the press.

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