Late Runner Gabriele Grunewald's Sister Killed In Hit And Run

The family of late runner Gabriele Grunewald is mourning the loss of her sister, Abigail Anderson, who was killed in a car accident Saturday. Her death came two years after Gabriele succumbed to cancer in 2019.

Anderson was walking on Cleveland Avenue near the Elizabeth Lyle Robbie Stadium in Falcon Heights, Minnesota Saturday evening when she was hit by a truck, CBS Minnesota reported. The Ramsey County Sheriff’s Office said the truck hit a parked car before striking the victim. The driver then immediately made a U-turn, “running over the victim a second time while attempting to flee the scene.” Anderson later died at Regions Hospital.

Police did not disclose the identity of the truck driver but revealed that the suspect was already in custody and had his blood drawn for tests.

On Monday, Gabriele’s husband Justin Grunewald took to Instagram to confirm the death of Anderson.

“You were and are Gabriele’s best friend, you are the best third wheel ever, you are such an incredible little sister,” he wrote. “A part of me is happy you are with Gabriele. I was hoping maybe you’d give it another 50 years before going to visit her.”

“I’m sorry I always gave you the hard big brother advice, I always wanted more out of you. In the end though, you were the perfect version of yourself. You found a great guy, you were happy with life as an amazing nurse, you were spending more time on art and things you care about. You were creating your own legacy while elegantly carrying on your sisters,” Grunewald continued.

Known to all as Abby, Anderson was a nurse at Children’s Minnesota. She was an avid runner like her sister and was heavily involved in the Brave Like Gabe Foundation, which supports rare cancer research.

In her tribute to Abby, American middle-distance runner Heather Kampf, who was a roommate of Gabriele, described her as “The same type of positive, bright soul with the same smile and personality.” “Seeing her always felt like she kept a piece of Gabe alive, so to lose her as well is really heartbreaking,” Kampf told CBS.