ROME: A 19-year-old member of the Italian Alpine ski team’s reserve squad died after she fell during training this week, authorities said Tuesday.
The accident happened Monday when Matilde Lorenzi fell on the Grawand G1 slope in Val Senales in northeastern Italy.
The army corporal was immediately transported by helicopter to a hospital in Bolzano, according to the Italian Winter Sports Federation (FISI).
“On behalf of the entire Army family and myself, I express my deepest condolences to the family of Corporal VFP4 Matilde Lorenzi, who lost her life in yesterday’s tragic accident during giant slalom training in Val Senales,“ said Carmine Masiello, chief of staff of the Italian Army.
FISI did not give further details of what happened in the accident, but according to the Gazzetta dello Sport, the skier, originally from Villarbasse in Piedmont, lost control of her skis and her head crashed against the icy surface of the slope.
A specialist in speed events, Lorenzi was crowned Italian senior super-G champion last March.
She finished sixth and eighth in the downhill and super-G at the 2024 Junior World Championships in Chatel, France.
Her best result in the European Cup, the last step before the World Cup, was an 11th place in super-G in December 2023 in St Moritz, Switzerland.
