Three-time Olympic medallist airlifted to hospital after horror 50m skiing fall as panicked wife and daughter watch on
OLYMPIC legend Alexis Pinturault was airlifted to hospital following a horror crash on Friday.
Pinturault, 33, was taking part in an Alpine skiing World Cup super-G in Kitzbühel, Austria when he found himself needing urgent medical assistance after crashing into a gate.
The three-time Olympic medallist managed to return to his feet and remove his skis before falling to the ground once more in pain.
The star’s wife, Romane, was watching on in horror alongside their one-year-old daughter from the crowd while Pinturault was airlifted to hospital.
The French Ski Federation have since confirmed that Pinturault has suffered a significant bone bruise on the medial tibial plateau, along with a small fracture and an injury to the medial meniscus.
The news will come as huge frustration to the three-time world champion Frenchman after he suffered a season-ending injury this time last year too.
Pinturault tore his left ACL in a 50m fall that required him to be airlifted to hospital as well.
Marco Odermatt, 27, went on to win Friday’s super-G for his 44th career World Cup victory and opened up about Pinturault’s injury, explaining that it’s hard to see so soon after his recovery from his ACL issue.
He said: “It hurts extremely if you know a little bit about Alexis’ story.”
Friday’s race was only Pinturault’s eighth return to the slopes since his 11-month layoff with his ACL injury.
It’s understood that Pinturault will now travel to France to receive treatment for his new injuries.
The superstar’s teammate Florian Loriot also crashed at the same spot and was airlifted away with unknown injuries.
While Italian skier Dominik Paris and Austrians Lukas Feurstein and Otmar Striedinger were also involved in crashes.
However, the pair appeared to avoid any serious injuries.
Pinturault is a three-time Olympian for France, winning bronze in the Men’s Giant Slalom at the Sochi 2014 games and the Pyeong Chang 2018 games, as well as winning silver for Men’s Alpine Combined in 2018 too.
He is also a three-time world champion, having won the 2019 and 2023 combined title and the 2017 team event.
Pinturault has also racked up four bronze medals and one silver during his World Championship efforts over the years.