TRACK athlete Shelby Daniele is being remembered for her “heart of gold” with her former coach giving a heart-wrenching tribute after her sudden death.
Shelby, who was an athlete at California Polytechnic State University, died last week aged just 23.
Her shock passing sparked an outpouring of emotion from teammates, her college and her old high school, and now her former coach has expressed grief of his own.
Buchanan High School track and field head coach Brian Weaver had people from all over the country reaching out in sorrow, Your Central Valley reported.
Weaver said “they remember her” adding Shelby was “a big part of our family”.
Weaver coached Shelby during all four years of high school and took pride in witnessing her growth.
He described her as “everything you want a young athlete to be” and said she had a heart of gold.
Weaver added: “She was an extremely, extremely fierce competitor but had so much love and joy for every person that she was around.
“She loved everything
“If people could just go and do that, love every minute that you have, she would want to be remembered for that. She lived life to the fullest.”
Shelby continued to rise up the ranks as she progressed at Cal Poly but never forgot those who had helped her along her journey, Weaver said.
She started to give back to the track community by mentoring “so many athletes” herself, the coach added.
Shelby tragically died just months after graduating her master’s degree.
Her cause of death remains unknown.
The Cal Poly team said: “Shelby was truly one of a kind and will be missed dearly by everyone in the Cal Poly community.”
Shelby started studying agriculture at Cal Poly in 2019, telling the school that she wanted to attend because it was closer to her parents near Fresno than Cal State Fullerton, where she also considered enrolling.
During her time as a student athlete, Shelby became the record holder for the indoor 200-meter sprint, clocking a time of 24.69 seconds.
She recorded the second fastest time for the indoor 60-meter dash and 100-meter sprint.
Shelby is tied in third place all-time in the women’s outdoor 200-meter sprint.
She graduated with a bachelor’s in agriculture in 2023 and earned her master’s in agriculture this June, when her father, Daniel, paid a touching tribute online.
She was seen beaming as she posed alongside her parents for a snap, writing: “Congratulations to my daughter Shelby Daniele for graduating with her masters degree from Cal poly.”
In her athletics profile, Shelby said she’d gone into agricultural studies so she could use her career to “improve the environment and give back to our society.”
HEARTBREAKING TRIBUTES
Her former high school, Buchanan, led the tributes to the student-athlete.
A post on Facebook said: “Shelby was a standout track athlete!
“No one will ever forget that day in May of 2019 when Shelby upset the field at the CA State Meet to win the 200-meter individual title, helping to secure the team win with her girls.
“Shelby was a fantastic athlete, going on to Cal Poly to continue to break records in track, but she will be remembered by her teammates and coaches as an even more amazing person.
“As coaches, we will always appreciate the time she took to stop by the track when she was back in town to say hi to everyone.
“This loss leaves a gigantic hole in so many hearts, and we will never forget the amazing woman that Shelby was.”
Shelby’s teammates have also paid their own tributes.
Brianna Maroney described her as an “amazing” person.
“Shelby inspired me every day she showed up at the track,” she said.
“So proud to have been her teammate.”
