Born in Russia but competing for Australia in figure skating at the Olympics, Ekaterina Alexandrovskaya died in Moscow at the age of 20.
The cause of Friday ‘s death has yet to be revealed. In February Alexandrovskaya retired for injury.
She was granted Australian nationality to compete with Indigenous Australian pairs skating partner Harley Windsor at the 2018 Winter Olympics.
Windsor, who played with her in the 2017 world juniors, said he was devastated.
“The amount we had achieved during our partnership is something I can never forget and will always hold close to my heart,” Windsor wrote on Instagram.
Her coach, Andrei Khekalo, revealed that Alexandrovskaya was diagnosed with epilepsy earlier this year.
“She was fearless. She was like a fish in the water,” he told AFP.
Alexandrovskaya broke barriers with Windsor, who became the first indigenous Australian to qualify for the Winter Olympics.