Jeremy Lusk

By MARIANELA JIMENEZ, Associated Press Writer SAN JOSE, Costa Rica (AP)—Jeremy Lusk, an American freestyle motocross rider, died of head injuries Tuesday after crashing while trying to land a backflip in competition. He was 24. Jorge Ramirez, chief of the intensive care unit at Calderon Hospital where Lusk was taken, said the motocross racer suffered severe brain damage and a possible spinal cord injury. Lusk won a gold medal at the 2008 X Games. He was injured Saturday night when he failed to complete a full rotation while attempting a Hart Attack backflip and slammed headfirst into the dirt. Lusk crashed in almost identical fashion in the freestyle semifinals at the 2007 X Games but was not hurt. He had a successful 2008 season, winning Freestyle gold at the X Games and silver in Best Trick when he landed the first double-grab Hart Attack backflip. He won a bronze helmet in Freestyle at the Moto X World Championships in his hometown of San Diego. Ramirez said Lusk died with his parents and his wife, Lauren, at his side. “He was in a medicine-induced coma as a protective measure, and the medicine was being reduced to see how his body responded,� he said. “That didn’t mean he was going to wake up. He was in shock and that got worse last night, until he stopped responding and entered into cardiac and respiratory failure.� Lusk lived in Temecula, Calif. A trust has been set up in his memory, and donations can be made through the Athlete Recovery Fund, www.athleterecoveryfund.com