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CEDAR CITY -- A member of the University of Utah Special Olympics team has died after choking at lunchtime on the opening day of the Special Olympics Utah Summer Games in Cedar City.
The Spectrum of St. George reports people performed the Heimlich maneuver and CPR on 56-year-old Lee Williams at the scene Thursday at the Southern Utah University Eccles Coliseum, but he later died at a local hospital.
Special Olympics Utah CEO Amy Hansen says it was the first death in the event's 42-year history.
Williams, who has participated in Special Olympics Utah since 2007, had been registered to play soccer.
He previously lived in a group care facility for people with intellectual disabilities and most recently was residing with a Sandy family trained to work with people with disabilities.
(Copyright 2011 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
