KINGSTON – Promising Jamaican sprinter Twayne Crooks died on Sunday at the age of 23 from stage-four stomach cancer, SportsMax writer Leighton Levy has revealed.

Reports of the passing of Crooks, a 200m and 400m specialist, circulated in the media on Sunday and Levy reported that the sprinter’s mother Marie Chambers-Garvey confirmed the sad news.

Crooks, who represented and won a bronze medal for Jamaica in the 4x400m relay at the 2014 World Junior Championships, was a student at the South University of New Orleans (SUNO) at the time of his death.

The news came as a shock to those close him who said that there was no indication that the athlete, who reportedly was in very good shape – was feeling any pain.

The 23-year-old who would have turned 24 on September 25, set an indoor personal best of 46.76 to win the men’s 400m title at the 2019 Indoor National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) Championships in February and then picked up the bronze medal at the outdoor championships in May.

“It really hurts my heart to know of his passing,” said Akeem Bloomfield, a former teammate of Crooks during their time at Kingston College was quoted as saying on SportsMax.

“I can remember the days at Kingston College training and pushing each other every day to be our best. I can remember 2015 when we went to champs to compete together.

“I cannot believe his passing. We used to sit and eat lunch together with our fellow teammates.”