The terrible fall of a Slovak star! Vlhová was left lying on the slope, she was taken away by helicopter

Skier Petra Vlhová has had a terrifying fall on her home track in Jasná, Slovakia. During the giant slalom race she lost control of her skis, which crossed, and ended up in the safety nets.

The Olympic champion was left lying on the slope in pain after the fall and organisers had to transport her off the slope on a sledge. She was then taken by helicopter to hospital.

A later examination showed that the ligaments in her right knee had been injured in the accident. This season is over for the 28-year-old ski star, as confirmed by Vlhová’s coach Mauro Pini at a press conference.

“We are very sorry about what happened today. Once again it was confirmed how unpredictable our sport can be. All of us in the team will do our best to make sure that Petra returns to the slopes even stronger,” Pini told the journalists.

Vlhová herself then sent a thank you message to her fans from the hospital. I believe that I can handle everything. I will fight to get back on skis as soon as possible.”

Vlhová was not the only one who struggled on the icy track

But the Slovak was not the only one who struggled on the icy track in Jasná. Just a few moments before her, Italian skier Federica Brignone, the overall leader in the giant slalom downhill, also had an accident. However, her fall was without serious consequences.

However, according to Vlhová’s coach, the conditions were not such a complication and the reason for the fall. “This is not the first time we have raced in such conditions. We are at the World Cup, the best skiers are here. We should be able to ski in such conditions. I don’t think that was the cause of the crash,” Pini told the media after the race.

In the end, it was Sweden’s Sara Hector who put in an absolutely dominant performance in Saturday’s race. In the first round, the thirty-one-year-old slalom racer beat the star American Mikaela Shiffrin by one second.

Hector then showed a convincing run in the second round of the giant slalom and won by one and a half seconds over the current World Cup leader. New Zealand’s Alice Robinson finished third.

Source: Sport.cz, CT Sport