Chicago Marathon 2011 Results: Will Caviness Tragedy Sheds Light on Race's Risks

The Chicago Marathon proved to be a glorious day for Moses Mospo, Ryan Hall and Liliya Shobukhova, but not for Will Caviness.

Caviness, a firefighter from North Carolina, made the trip to Chicago to take part in the Marathon. He was running for the charity International Association of Fire Fighters Burns Foundation when he collapsed just 500 yards from the finish line.

This wasn't Caviness's first marathon, as he previously ran the Outer Banks Marathon last year. According to the Chicago Tribune, who spoke with family members, he was in good health and was extremely athletic.

The cause of death is still unknown, but this tragedy has certainly opened our eyes to the dangers of running in a marathon.

It doesn't matter how healthy or athletic you are, a marathon has a way of exposing problems with your body that you didn't know you had.

This is what happened to Caviness. He was the first person to die at the Chicago Marathon since 2007. Six people have died at the Chicago Marathon alone since 1998. Marathon deaths are not frequent, but you have a greater chance of dying running a marathon than you would playing any other sport.

It's certainly a tragedy when something like this happens, but hopefully people will realize the risks they take when they opt to go out and run a marathon.

Whether you are a veteran or a first-timer, tragedy could strike at any moment, and unfortunately it struck Caviness and his family this past weekend.