Tag: Jerry Ward
Jerry Ward’s Wife Erin Merritt Details His Cause Of Death As A Pulmonary Embolism
Erin Merritt explained information revealed by medical examiners about Jerry Ward’s death.
Bodybuilder and IFBB pro judge Jerry Ward passed away in July. There have been new details shared about his death following information being received from the medical examiner’s office. Ward’s wife, Erin Merritt, shared the information via social media.
Ward began his bodybuilding career in 1994 the he earned his personal training certificate. He went onto work as a fitness model and dabbled in bodybuilding. Following his career, Ward began gaining attention as a commentator before working as a professional judge.
Jerry Ward became known for his outspoken natures, sharing his opinions on the sport of bodybuilding. While sharing the video, Merritt said that she was going it in “Jerry style.”
Erin Merritt: “I Finally Have Jerry’s Cause Of Death”
There was no cause of death revealed at the time but Merritt shared the information once she received it.
“The fact is the reason Jerry died is he died of a pulmonary embolism as a result of deep vein thrombosis. No, he did not have any surgeries. No, he was not on any long flights. No, he did not complain of any sort of calf or leg issue, there was nothing there. He was fine before he left on his trip on Tuesday,” Merritt said.
Merritt shared a video and wanted to give detail of Jerry Ward’s death because she believes that is what he would have wanted.
“I got a call from the medical examiner’s office yesterday and I finally have Jerry’s cause of death. And instead of everyone writing articles where everyone thinks they know how he died, and also, I’m not a doctor as an article also said, I want to give you some facts because that’s how Jerry liked to operate. Yes, he also had an opinion, but he liked to delve into facts.”
Erin Merritt Wanted To Avoid False Rumors Of Jerry Ward’s Death
Initially, the cause of death was a heart attack but there was no information shared. Because of how Ward was with his opinions and knowing his personality, Merritt wanted to be transparent and end potential rumors that could be false.
“He liked transparency. He wanted facts and he wanted people to know what happened whether he wanted to tell you or not. He always told you the truth and that’s the truth. So, I want to put this to rest.”
That was the only thing that kind of made sense or came to mind, but we now know it was PE. For those of you who know, they tend to be pretty deadly, and they hit like that, and you’re done. It brings me a little bit of comfort to know that he didn’t suffer.”
Erin Merritt confirms that Jerry Ward did collapse on the floor of his hotel room. He was found during a wellness check the morning after when he did not report for his normal duties for the show.
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Jerry Ward Warns Of Extreme Dangers From Diuretics In Bodybuilding
Jerry Ward: “There is no right way to use diuretics in bodybuilding.”
UPDATE 7/23/22: In light of the passing of Jerry Ward, Generation Iron is republishing a GI Exclusive interview segment with Ward first aired in 2020.
On the day of a bodybuilding competition, one of the most important things is to have pitch perfect conditioning. A large part of this comes down to how dry you can make your body so it looks as sharp as possible on stage. This kind of timing, to retain no water weight on the exact day and time of the show, is a true challenge. This is why many bodybuilders have turned to diuretics as a solution to being grainy and dry as possible on the day of a show. In our latest GI Exclusive interview, bodybuilder and fitness guru Jerry Ward discusses the extreme dangers of using diuretics for bodybuilding.
While many bodybuilders have turned to diuretics in order to bring the best and driest possible physique to the stage, Jerry Ward makes a clear point to remind us that there is “no right way” to use diuretics in this capacity. Diuretics have a medical use, and that’s the only way they should be used, to use them for athletic competition, the way bodybuilders often do, is to misuse them in a way that can be extremely dangerous.
The key issue to using diuretics for bodybuilding are two-fold. Athletes can end up taking too much diuretics leading to dangerous health issues. The second issue is how much other dietary decisions affect the way diuretics will work inside your body. Jerry Ward goes on to explain multiple times in his life as a bodybuilder that he witness athletes literally freeze and crumple on stage. He’s even seen one athlete freeze up on stage, go to the hospital, and try to come back and finish competing. She was disqualified.
Jerry Ward then goes on to describe a time when he started locking up due to diuretics use. He describes a moment where he literally couldn’t open his arms out wide due to his chest locking up. He also describes anther time he couldn’t get himself out of bed because of his legs locking up.
While these scenarios all ended with Jerry and the other athletes in these stories ultimately being okay – these kinds of health problems could lead to a more serious and dangerous outcome. Jerry Ward makes it very clear that many bodybuilders don’t take this seriously enough.
You can watch him explain in more detail about the dangers of diuretic use in bodybuilding in our latest GI Exclusive clip above.
NPC/IFBB Pro Judge & Bodybuilder Jerry Ward Passes Away At 46
Bodybuilder and IFBB Pro Judge Jerry Ward has passed away at 46 years old.
Jerry Ward, bodybuilder, coach and IFBB Pro Judge, has passed away at 47 years old. News of his passing was announced by bodybuilding promoter Gary Udit on Instagram. Ward was commentating on a live stream for Udit’s 2022 NPC Teen, Collegiate and Masters Nationals in Pittsburgh, PA. At the time of this writing, no cause of death has been revealed.
Though the cause of death was not stated, Ward’s passing was only described as sudden overnight. He was in the middle of commentating the weekend’s events and even released a video on his YouTube channel only hours before his passing.
“Sadly we lost a terrific friend today with the passing of Jerry Ward. Jerry died suddenly last night. He was here in Pittsburgh commentating on the Live Stream of the NPC Teen, Collegiate and Masters Nationals. In the NPC and IFBB PRO LEAGUE over the years Jerry was an excellent competitor, judge, expediter, head judge and PPV commentator. His knowledge of the sport of Bodybuilding was unparalleled! Jerry was liked and loved by everyone he came in contact with! We are devastated at his passing.”
– Gary Udit
Jerry Ward: from competitive bodybuilder to outspoken commentator
Jerry Ward’s passion for bodybuilding started professionally in 1994 when he earned his personal trainer certification. Later in the early 2000s, Ward started work as a fitness model. He would later go on to not only compete in bodybuilding but also wrestling and even dabble in some acting in commercials and minor TV shows.
After his competitive career, Jerry Ward later gained attention and notoriety for his bodybuilding commentary on YouTube. Ward was known for his blunt and straightforward opinions. Not reluctant to speak his mind, Ward would often find himself in controversy for his outspoken opinions.
Generation Iron had previously sat down with Jerry Ward to discuss the modern state of bodybuilding. True to form, he was very outspoken about the dangers he saw in the sport – particularly when it came to drugs often used by athletes such as diuretics during contest prep.
You can watch a segment from our interview with Jerry Ward below:
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Jerry Ward also rose through the ranks to eventually become an NPC and IFBB Pro judge. Ward also owned a successful supplement brand and personal training business under the name Bios3 Training.
Jerry Ward’s competitive history
2015
NPC Capitol Grand Prix, 4th
Capitol Grand Prix, 3rd
NPC Maryland State/East Coast Classic, 3rd
NPC Baltimore Gladiator Classic, 13th
Baltimore Gladiator Classic, 6th
2009
NPC Pittsburgh Bodybuilding Fitness & Figure, 4th
2007
NPC Lehigh Valley Bodybuilding And Figure Championships, 2nd
NPC Pittsburgh Bodybuilding, Fitness, And Figure Contest, 8th
The entire staff at Generation Iron would like to extend condolences to friend and family of Jerry Ward during this difficult time. This story is still developing and will be updated as more information becomes available. For more news and updates – make sure to stay tuned to Generation Iron Fitness Network for all things bodybuilding, fitness, and strength sports.