Brazil's top race walker, Rafael dos Anjos Duarte Fontenelle, was found dead on Sunday in the pool of the condominium where he lived in Brasilia.

According to his coach Valtinho Pereira da Silva, Duarte's body was found on Sunday morning by one of his neighbors and his body showed no signs of violence.

Duarte, 25, made his name known in 2002, when he finished fourth in the 10 kilometers at the World Youth Championships in Jamaica and broke the Brazilian record.

He has secured a ticket for the up-coming Pan American Cup, scheduled for April in El Salvador.

The Brazilian Athletics Confederation announced a three-day official mourning for him.

(Xinhua News Agency Feburary 23, 2009)