This article is more than 2 years old

This article is more than 2 years old

Police in the US have charged a man with first-degree murder after the body of a promising young Spanish golf champion was found on a course in Iowa.

Celia Barquín Arozamena, 22, who won the European Ladies’ Amateur Championship in July was from Cantabria, northern Spain, and had been studying civil engineering at Iowa State University.

Barquín’s body was discovered on Monday morning at Coldwater golf links in Ames after police were alerted to an abandoned golf bag on the course.

Officers found Barqúin’s body in a pond some distance from the bag. According to the criminal complaint filed on Tuesday, she had been stabbed several times.

“It’s still very troubling for something like this to happen in broad daylight in a community that is as safe as Ames is,” the local police commander, Geoff Huff, told a news conference.

Police said that Collin Daniel Richards, 22, of no known address, had been charged with Barqúin’s murder.

Richards was ordered to remain behind bars on Tuesday on a $5m cash bond after a brief court appearance by video from the county jail in Nevada, Iowa. Court documents show he has a history of being charged with violence offenses, including abusing a former girlfriend.

News of the golfer’s death brought people out on to the streets in her home town of Reocín to pay their respects. The local council called a rally on Tuesday to hold a minute’s silence in her memory and said that three days’ mourning would be declared following “this vile act”.

“We woke this morning to the awful news of the murder of our young neighbour Celia Barquín on a golf course in Iowa, where she was studying and training to be a golfer, a sport in which she had a bright future,” the council said in a statement.

The mayor of Reocín, Pablo Diestro, said the area was struggling to come to terms with what had happened. “She was a really hard-working girl who was deeply loved by the whole town,” he told the Spanish sports site Marca.com. “It’s a tragedy. We can’t believe it.”

The mayor said he had taught Barquín maths when she was younger. “She was a real example, a remarkable girl and an excellent student,” he said. “As a student, she always gave it her all and always had a smile on her face.”

Tributes were also paid by staff at the US university, whose sports teams are known as the Iowa State Cyclones.

“Celia had an infectious smile, a bubbly personality and anyone fortunate enough to know her was blessed,” said Jamie Pollard, director of athletics at Iowa State University.

“Our Cyclones family mourns the tragic loss of Celia, a spectacular student-athlete and ISU ambassador.”

Christie Martens, head women’s golf coach at the university, said everyone was devastated by what had happened. “Celia was a beautiful person who was loved by all her team-mates and friends. She loved Iowa state [university] and was an outstanding representative for our school. We will never forget her competitive drive to be the best and her passion for life.”

Barquín’s victory in the European Ladies’ Amateur in Slovakia had secured her an invitation to next year’s Women’s British Open at Woburn. In August she advanced to stage two of the LPGA Tour qualifying tournament.

She ended her university career (2015-18) with her fourth-straight NCAA regional appearance and earned All-Big 12 team honours for the third time (2015, 2016, 2018) – one of only two players in the school’s history to accomplish the feat.

The Spanish golfer Azahara Muñoz posted a picture of herself and Barquín on Instagram with the message: “Waking up to the news that Celia won’t be around any more is heartbreaking. This world is so amazing and so freaking hard at the same time. All my thoughts and prayers to the family … can’t even imagine what they are going through right now. You’ll never be forgotten Celia … one day we’ll see each other again.”

The Press Association contributed to this report