A high-profile athlete has died after crashing his car into a Gold Coast fence this morning.
Dean Mercer drove his vehicle through a fence in Mermaid Waters around 7am and died on the operating table later this morning.
Mercer’s death has rocked the surf lifesaving world, with friends telling Fairfax that the former Iron Man had a “heart the size of Phar Lap”.
The 47-year-old is thought to have suffered a heart attack just moments before the accident, according to the Gold Coast Bulletin.
The retired athlete was worked on by paramedics at the scene for at least an hour before being rushed to the Gold Coast University hospital in a critical condition, where he sadly went into cardiac arrest in the emergency room and passed away.
Mercer was a regular feature on weekend television in the late 80s and early 90s when the sport was at its peak.
He took out five NSW state titles, two Test of the Toughest titles, and various national titles for other surf lifesaving events.
The Thirroul-raised athlete was back in his hometown just over the weekend where he attended his grandmother’s funeral and met with his friend and former competitor Johnathan Crowe.
“I am absolutely devastated,” Crowe told Fairfax. “He was down in Thirroul on the weekend for his grandmother’s funeral with all the family.
“I saw him at the airport last night as he headed back to the Gold Coast. We had two beers and a laugh.”
Mercer was inducted into the Gold Coast’s Kurrawa club’s Hall of Fame in 2014 and was still actively involved in the sport, coaching the Nippers at the club.
His wife Reen, a former lifesaving star as well, visited the scene following the crash and went to the hospital after he passed away.
Mercer is survived by his four sons and wife.
