Canadian freestyle skier Cassie Sharpe suffers bad fall, taken off in sled

Canadian freestyle skier Cassie Sharpe suffered a bad fall during the women’s freeski halfpipe event on Thursday.

Rescue operations took several ‌tense minutes during which the crowd fell quiet but spectators cheered in relief as Sharpe was fit enough to wave her arms while taken away on a sled.

Sharpe's conditions is stable, according to the CEO of Freestyle Canada. The federation said the 33-year-old lost consciousness, but is awake. She was headed to the Livigno clinic for further tests.

Sharpe, who won halfpipe Olympic gold ⁠in 2018 and silver in 2022, had already qualified third when she was injured.

Canada's Cassie Sharpe taken away by sled after crash in freeski halfpipe qualification

Defending Olympic champion Eileen Gu advanced to the final while shaking off a fall during her opening run.

Gu clipped the lip of the halfpipe on the third trick of her first run, knocking her left ski off and sending her skittering to the bottom of the course.