Downhill star Aleksander Aamodt Kilde crashed hard into the fences within sight of the finish in the World Cup’s long Lauberhorn race on Saturday and appeared to have injured his right leg before being flown to hospital.
Kilde, a two-time winner in the downhill in Wengen, received prolonged treatment while lying flat next to the finish. Race workers tied up his right leg above the knee before a helicopter landed nearby to take him away.
Kilde is a two-time downhill World Cup seasonal champion and a long-time partner of American skier Mikaela Shiffrin.
Racing for the third day in a row at Wengen, Kilde battled an illness before finishing third in a shorter downhill on Thursday and third again in a super-G on Friday.
Kilde was off balance on his skis as he approached the final turning S-shaped section, about two minutes and ten seconds into an exhausting run, and then made another mistake entering the left turn to the finish.
The 31-year-old Norwegian was launched from his skis and twisted in the air before crashing backwards into safety barriers along the track.
The race was led by Kilde’s biggest rival in the downhill, Swiss star Marco Odermatt, who also won on Thursday on his Alpine country’s most legendary course.