The sister of Olympic hopeful JJ Rice speaks out after his fatal accident

Jackson James “JJ” RiceThe family continues to mourn his loss.

After the 18-year-old kitefoiler died in a diving accident off the coast of Tonga on June 15, Lily rice was one of many who paid tribute in JJ’s honor.

“I am blessed with the most amazing brother in the world,” she began a June 16 Facebook post. “I miss JJ so much. I am shocked. I still can’t believe it. It will take time for all of us who loved JJ for so long to feel okay again. JJ was the most amazing, funniest, most unique person I have ever known and I will miss everything about him.”

Speaking of his dream of one day competing on the Tongan Olympic team for kitefoil racing, she said: “He was an incredible kitefoiler and would have made it to the Olympics and come home with a big shiny medal and an even bigger smile. I will try my best to apply what he taught me and be just a little bit as incredible as he was.”

In May, JJ competed in the Last Chance Reggae in Hyères, France, where he hoped to secure a spot at the 2024 Olympic Games, but narrowly missed out.