Sara Lee, who won a World Wrestling Entertainment reality series in 2015, has died, according to a statement from the former professional wrestler’s mother. She was 30.
Lee’s mother, Teri Lee, shared the news of her daughter’s death in a Facebook post. The Bexar County Medical Examiner’s Office in southern Texas also confirmed her death, E! Online reported.
“It is with heavy hearts that we share the news that our Sarah Weston has gone to be with Jesus,” Teri Lee wrote. “We are all in shock and arrangements are not complete. We ask that you respectfully let our family mourn.”
No cause of death has been released.
Lee, whose married name was Sara Ann Weston, won the WWE’s “Tough Enough Series.” The reality series run by the pro wrestling promotion determined who would receive a contract from the WWE, Fox News reported. She won the event with Bronson Matthews, whose real name is Josh Bredl.
Sara Lee was married to former WWE wrestler Westin Blake, whose real name is Cory Weston, in 2017, E! Online reported. They are parents to two children.
“I think my fans can kind of relate to me because I’m a normal girl,” Lee told the Midland Daily News newspaper in Midland, Michigan, after winning the competition, CNN reported. “I’ve just been myself.”
According to the Daily News, Lee, who was born and raised in Hope, Michigan, was a 2010 graduate of Meridian High School in Sanford, where she competed on the track team. She also was a powerlifter, according to CNN.
Lee initially wrestled under the name “Hope” before changing back to her real name, Fox News reported. She was assigned to NXT and trained at the WWE Performance Center in Orlando, Florida. She wrestled in NXT until she was released in 2016.
CNN has reached out to WWE for comment.
“No tweet or amount of words can bring back this beautiful human, but all of my heart goes out to @TheWestinBlake & their family. Sara Lee will be missed greatly,” wrestler Chelsea Green tweeted. “The photo on the left is how I will always remember her -- laughing, smiling, carefree.”
A GoFundMe page has been established for Lee’s family.