Raechelle Chase, fitness influencer from New Zealand, dies at age 44
The fitness world is in shock and mourning over the news that well-known influencer Raechelle Chase of New Zealand has died at the young age of 44, as Breitbart reported.
Word of Chase's passing came via her daughter, Anna, who revealed that the death actually occurred earlier this month.
Cause unknown
Anna Chase did not specify the cause of her mother's death, and the Coroner's Office in New Zealand indicated that a probe was underway.
Even so, authorities have not suggested whether wrongdoing or foul play may have been involved.
The Ministry of Justice in the country said simply, “Given the recent nature of the death, no further information is available at this stage.”
Prolific career remembered
The renowned fitness guru, bodybuilder, and exercise coach boasted more than 1.4 million Facebook followers, and had blazed a trail in her profession, as the New York Post noted.
Chase was the first woman from her native New Zealand to compete in an Olympia bodybuilding event, doing so at the 2011 Las Vegas event.
She has also recently posed for an Oxygen magazine photo shoot, marking the 14th time she would have graced a publication's cover.
Reactions pour in
Leading the tributes for Chase was Anna, one of the fitness influencer's five children, who wrote of her mother, “She was supportive, kind-hearted and always had the best advice for us.”
“She was a wildly driven woman with ambition and has inspired millions of people around the world. I miss her immensely and that love won't ever fade,” the grieving daughter added.
Chase's good friend Keith O'Connell said of his friend, whom he described as one of the “kindest beautiful souls” he knew, “not going to lie, very few things in my life hit me as hard as your passing. You had so much left to live. So much love to give.”
Considering her massive online following, it appears that the loss of Chase will indeed reverberate throughout the fitness and bodybuilding worlds for quite some time to come.
