Cuban rower has gone missing days into international competition
A Cuban athlete participating in the 2017 World Rowing Championships in Sarasota has gone missing, officials say.
Licet Hernandez-Licea, 24, was reported missing just after 1 p.m. Thursday after she did not show up for her morning competition, according to the Sarasota County Sheriff’s Office. She was last seen around 9 p.m. Wednesday.
An estimated 900 athletes from 69 countries are participating in the rowing championships in a nine-day event that began last week.
Officials told WLRN that detectives do not suspect foul play because Hernandez-Licea had indicated to authorities that she wanted to withdraw from the international event. However, local, state and federal authorities are treating the athlete as a missing person.
Anyone with information regarding her whereabouts is asked to contact Sheriff’s Office investigators at 941-861-1712 or 941-8610-4256 or 941-316-1201. Anonymous tips can also be submitted by calling Crime Stoppers at 941-366-TIPS.
This story was originally published September 30, 2017 at 3:15 PM with the headline "Cuban rower has gone missing days into international competition."