Olympic athlete dies in truck accident

• Bennett competed in BMX at Beijing Olympics
• He drove off road and crashed into an iron gate, according to report
• Texan was three-time world champion

Kyle Bennett, a 2008 Olympic BMX athlete, died early Sunday in a single-vehicle accident, USA Cycling announced.

Bennett, 33, crashed his truck in his hometown of Conroe, Texas. At 2:16 a.m. Sunday, Bennett's 2006 Toyota Tundra went off the road into a ditch and crashed into a pipe and through an iron gate at a residence, The Montgomery County Police Reporter reported on its website.

He was pronounced dead at the scene, the newspaper reported. The paper reported that he was not wearing a seat belt and was driving at a high rate of speed, according to police.

Bennett was a three-time world champion and won the automatic spot on the 2008 Olympic team.

He did not advance out of the semifinals at the Beijing Games, where BMX made its Olympic debut. U.S. teammates Mike Day and Donny Robinson won silver and bronze respectively.

Bennett got his start in BMX at age 7 and was raised by his grandparents in Conroe, north of Houston. They drove him all over the South for competitions and turned their back yard into a course for Bennett to practice.

Nicknamed Butter for his style, Bennett also rode a road bike for endurance leading up to the 2008 Olympics.

BMX is a sport known for its spectacular crashes and dare devil moves.

"I'm not going to lie," Bennett said in an interview with USA TODAY in 2008. "Every time I get up on that starting hill, I'm scared. It's a risk you're going to take. If you love your sport as much as I do, you're willing to take that."