‘Biggest Loser’ contestant Daniel Wright dead at 30
Former “The Biggest Loser” contestant Daniel Wright has died after a battle with leukemia, according to fellow ex-contenders on the weight-loss reality TV show.
Wright, 30, who competed in Seasons 7 and 8 of the NBC show, passed away Sunday night, his former castmates said.
“I am so so heartbroken to hear about Daniel Wright this morning. He has fought SO HARD during his battle with cancer & more,” former “The Biggest Loser” contestant Courtney Crozier Respess wrote on Facebook.
“This man is one of the kindest people I have ever met & is a true difference maker in this world! His faith has never faded, even in the darkest of times. I am honored to have known him!!!” she added.
Respess asked to keep Wright’s wife, Rebecca, also a former “The Biggest Loser” contestant on Season 8 of the show, “in your prayers.
“Rebecca will need all of us to lift her up now & for the months & years to come,” Respess wrote.
According to a GoFundMe page set up in 2017, Wright was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia in October of that year.
Wright had been undergoing chemotherapy and even went back to work at one point, but then suffered a debilitating relapse, according to the fundraising page.
“The mountain is now much bigger as relapsed leukemia is harder to beat. There are limited options, but we have a big God!” the update on the GoFundMe account said.
Two days before Wright died, Rebecca Wright posted on Facebook that her husband “had a lot of blood clots come out of his stool & this morning he threw up blood so they are doing a Endoscopy here in the next couple of hours to find the source of the bleed & then clamp, band, flush, or cauterize the source.
“This comes with complications because he is so sick but more if we do nothing!” Wright posted. “Yesterday, the Lord broke me down & today because of your prayers & my pleading our Lord has made me warrior strong!!”
“The Biggest Loser” Season 8 winner Danny Cahill posted a tribute to Wright on Facebook detailing how he met his friend in May 2009 on the beach in Malibu during filming for the show.
“Yesterday the world lost a bit of its light,” wrote Cahill, who went on to say how he was in Daniel and Rebecca’s wedding party.
“15 of us went to the beach that morning to begin our journey on season 8 of The Biggest Loser. Our 16th contestant was driven up to the starting position of that first 1-mile race (which he won) and out popped Daniel. ‘Hey guys!!!’ He yelled as he jogged over to us,” said Cahill, adding, “Little did I know the effect this man would have on my life.”
Joe Mitchell, a Season 12 contestant on the weight-loss show, called Wright “a hero and a man of faith who inspired so many, including me, during his short time on this earth” in a post on Facebook.
“He and his lovely bride showed the whole world what true love, faith and commitment are all about and he will be truly missed,” Mitchell wrote.
A rep for NBC did not return a request for comment.
