Olympic speedskater taken off ice on stretcher after getting face sliced with opponent’s skate blade in crash

A speedskating occasion on the Milan Cortina Olympics was interrupted by a bloody accident Friday.

Polish skater Kamila Sellier was taken off the ice on a stretcher after a blade from a competitor's skate sliced her face above the left eye in a sudden crash.

About 1 minute and 40 seconds into their quarterfinal race within the 1500m brief observe, American skater Kristen Santos-Griswold handed Sellier, knocking the Polish skater off stability as her proper skate grazed Sellier's face. As Sellier fell, she collided with Italy's Ariana Fontana.

Referees paused the race round 13 seconds after the accident, and medical personnel assisted Sellier on the ice as officers held a white sheet to dam the skater from the gang on the Milano Ice Skating Area.

Sellier finally gave a thumbs-up and was escorted off the ice in a stretcher. The Related Press reported that she acquired stitches whereas nonetheless on the ice, and was later taken to a hospital for additional examination. Polish officers stated that Sellier's eye was positive after the incident.

The skater's blood needed to be cleaned off the ice earlier than the race might proceed.

Officers additionally deemed Santos-Griswold's cross unlawful, which prevented the American skater from advancing to the semifinal spherical.

Fontana finally positioned second as soon as the race resumed, and he or she went on to position fifth within the ultimate race of the occasion.

The occasion ended with South Korea's Kim Gilli successful gold and fellow South Korean skater Choi Minjeong taking silver, whereas U.S. skater Corinne Stoddard took residence the bronze.

Nazgul the wolfdog steals show during 2026 Winter Olympics race, gets photo finish Simone Biles crashes interview with Olympian Ilia Malinin to console him after shocking loss

The Milan video games marked Sellier's first Olympics. The skater didn’t instantly reply to Leisure Weekly's request for remark.

Get your each day dose of leisure information, celeb updates, and what to look at with our EW Dispatch e-newsletter.

The Winter Olympics will proceed all through northern Italy till Sunday's closing ceremony.

Shut