Dietrich Mateschitz photographed on July 1, 2018 in Austria.
Credit: ERWIN SCHERIAU/APA/AFP via Getty Images
(CNN) --
The owner and co-founder of sports drink company Red Bull has died, the company announced Saturday.
Dietrich Mateschitz began marketing the drink in Austria in 1987, according to the company.
“Right now the predominant feeling is one of sadness,” Red Bull said in an email to employees across the company.
“But soon the sadness will give way to gratitude: gratitude for what changed, touched, encouraged and made possible for so many people on an individual level.
We will continue to connect with him with respect and love.”
In addition to its flagship product, Red Bull has become known under Mateschitz for its intensive marketing of extreme sports and events, including an unprecedented 2012 parachute jump from the edge of space.
He also sponsors two Formula One teams.
"He was an incredible visionary entrepreneur and a man who helped transform our sport and created the Red Bull brand that is known around the world," Formula One CEO Stefano Domenicali said in a written statement.
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