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Death Of A Kettlebell Icon

Posted on January 4, 2026January 5, 2026 by Steve Ainslie

Recently, I learned that someone I admired died last year. Steve Cotter was the founder of the International Kettlebell and Fitness Federation.

When it comes to kettlebell training and fitness, Steve was an icon. I first learned about using kettlebells from his book and videos in 2012. In fact, I just reordered his book last week since I’m getting back into kettlebell workouts which was how Learned of his death.

He was 55 years old when he died of a heart attack. I wasn’t expecting that. The man was a beast. Videos of him throughout the years show a man with a superhero’s strength, abilities and physique. He was taped doing impressive feats of strength and agility, training others and coaching.

More recent videos showed a fit man, who was still quite strong but obviously older and less muscular. In those videos, he came across to me as a bit of a weird dude.

That’s OK with me. I’m a bit weird too.

Plus, I know next to nothing about him outside of his published bio. But I admired his accomplishments and appreciated his instructional videos and books.

I never knew Steve. I never met him. I never communicated with him via social media. He had no idea I even existed. And yet, he had a profound impact on my life. I appreciate that.

If I drank, I’d have one in his honor.

Instead, I decided to write this today.

Thank you Steve. You never knew how much you helped me.

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