death_date death_place birth_place height name birth_date article_title birth_name
17 february 2009 solana beach , california , u.s. san diego , california , u.s. 6 7 mike whitmarsh 18 may 1962 mike whitmarsh
 michael john whitmarsh
mike whitmarsh

michael john `` mike '' whitmarsh -lrb- may 18 , 1962 -- february 17 , 2009 -rrb- was an american volleyball player , who won the silver medal in the men 's inaugural beach volleyball tournament at the 1996 summer olympics , partnering mike dodd .
he was born in san diego , california , graduated from monte vista high school in nearby spring valley , and then attended the university of san diego .
throughout his career he earned over $ 1.5 million , as well as 28 titles .
the whitmarsh played college basketball at the university of san diego and was drafted by the nba 's portland trail blazers in the fifth round in 1984 .
he also narrowly missed making the roster of the minnesota timberwolves , and played professionally in germany for three years before abandoning basketball in favor of beach volleyball .
transitioning from the indoor hard court to the soft sand of beach volleyball -lrb- which is often played under hot and humid conditions -rrb- was not easy , and he developed a reputation for cramping late in tournaments .
his leg cramps were so bad that he often required an i.v. to rehydrate and equalize his chemical balance .
whitmarsh was in the midst of a divorce from his wife cindy and was found dead in a friend 's garage on wednesday , february 17 , 2009 , leaving behind two young daughters .
according to the san diego county medical examiner , he had committed suicide from inhalation of carbon monoxide from automobile exhaust .
