Death of Richard Swanson

Richard Swanson was a 42-year-old American man who tried to dribble a soccer ball from the U.S. city of Seattle, Washington, to São Paulo, Brazil.

Swanson's journey, dubbed Breakaway Brazil, was an ambitious effort that would have taken him through 11 countries over the course of 407 days, through severe conditions and high-crime areas.

Swanson live-blogged the effort on social media, and received material support along his route from fans, including people who recognized him on the side of the road.

Reflections upon his death focused on his advocacy for One World Futbol—the type of soccer ball he dribbled—and on his having found purpose, as a middle-aged, recently laid-off divorcé, in the fanbase he amassed.

[3] For his journey, Swanson decided to use a One World Futbol, a soccer ball which is intended to be indestructible and which is donated to people in developing countries.

[4][5] He told the Lincoln City News Guard that "Raising awareness for One World Futbol was the missing piece of the puzzle and the deciding factor for me".

[6] Using the money from selling his condo, he bought a GoPro HERO and high-end hiking gear including a backpack and tent.

[3] A profile in The Daily News of Longview, Washington, on May 8 said that Swanson was "staying on side roads as much as he can and dribbling the soccer ball only when it's safe".

He told the paper that "The worst part of the journey so far has been for my feet getting used to it" and that they "ache every day", which had led him to switch from his original walking shoes to sandals.

[6] Robert Andrew Powell in Grantland estimates that Swanson had very little chance of succeeding at his goal of reaching São Paulo in 407 days:[2]He'd trained for his trip, but he left Seattle so naive that he walked on Interstate 5, which is very much against the law.

[13] Some, including the musician Sting, left respectful condolences, while other online comments mocked or criticized Swanson or made light of the circumstances of his death.

[2][18] The columnists Arthur Black of Canada and Catón [es] of Mexico, both of whom incorrectly described Swanson as having been dribbling at the time of his death, were moderately critical.

[14] There was some discussion of someone finishing his trip, or of sending his sons to the World Cup, but a Sports Illustrated article argued that this might not be necessary, and that Swanson would have been happy with the impact he had on his peers and those who followed his journey.

"[2] On May 19, 2013, the One World Futbol organization presented Swanson's sons a ball during halftime of a Seattle Sounders FC match.

The man said that he was not worried about sharing Swanson's fate and that he and his friend were walking with their backs to traffic because "we don't wanna see it comin'!

[25] He was released on June 18, over the objections of the district attorney, on the condition of surrendering his driver's license and not operating a motor vehicle.