Shocking Cause Of Death Revealed For Dave Goldberg, Late Husband Of Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg

Dave Goldberg, chief executive officer of SurveyMonkey and husband of Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg, died of head trauma Friday night after reportedly collapsing after his gym workout during a family vacation at a private resort in Mexico, according to a New York Times report.

Mr. Goldberg collapsed while exercising and died of head trauma and blood loss, appearing to have fallen off the treadmill, cracking his head open, a Mexican government official told the New York Times.

Goldberg’s brother, Robert, reportedly found the Silicon Valley executive on the floor at the gym around 7 p.m. on Friday with blood around him.

Goldberg was vacationing with family and friends at a private beach-front villa close to Puerto Vallarta in southwest Mexico, according to a Mexican official in Nayarit State. He was transported to Hospital San Javier in Nuevo Vallarta where he reportedly died, said the government spokesman.

The death of the 47-year old husband and father of two was announced on Saturday with no details or cause of death, sparking worldwide speculation. Goldberg was the chief executive of SurveyMonkey, a start-up that makes web survey technology. Frequently referred to as “the husband of Sheryl Sandberg,” the couple formed one of Silicon Valley’s most well known and respected power couples.

In her bestselling book Lean In, Sandberg describes Goldberg as “my best friend, closest advisor, dedicated coparent, and the love of my life.”

Sandberg and Goldberg’s marriage was chronicled as a model of success for two-career couples raising a family together. Sandberg often attributed her remarkable success to having Goldberg as a highly supportive partner, writing in Lean In that a woman’s most important career move is choosing the right partner.

Robert Goldberg set up a memorial page for his late brother on Facebook, to which mourners around the world are expressing condolences and support to the family.

Although Sandberg has not yet released a statement on the death of her husband, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg remarked that Goldberg was “an amazing person and I’m glad I got to know him.”

Family members are planning an invitation-only funeral for Goldberg on Tuesday at the Stanford Memorial Auditorium. The invitation discourages funeral goers from taking pictures and posting the event on social media.

[Photo: Kevork Djansezian/Getty Images]