Alpine skiing: Next fall shock in Cortina d’Ampezzo – a blessing in disguise for Shiffrin colleague Isabella Wright

The downhill race on the Tofana was only a few minutes old when the next fall shocked the ski scene.

The American Wright, wearing start number three, fell on Saturday after around 45 seconds of driving and a long jump during the delta jump and slipped at high speed into the safety net, where she was thrown back onto the slope.

The 26-year-old initially remained motionless in the snow before carers and piste workers rushed to her aid and treated her for minutes.

Wright was then transported to a helicopter that took her to a hospital. Only after an interruption of around 15 minutes could the race, which had to be stopped again and again due to strong gusts of wind, be continued.

To everyone’s surprise, Wright appeared back in the finish area around an hour after the start of the race and gave the all-clear in an interview with Eurosport.

“I’m really happy that I’m standing here. I wanted to make sure that I stand here again and support my teammates. It was unfortunate circumstances for me today, I’m grateful that I’m standing on my feet,” explained the speed specialist , who showed up to the interview with a band-aid on her face.

“I have a wound on my chin and needed stitches. We’ll see how my head goes. But overall I’ve been pretty lucky,” she added.

Wright’s teammate Mikaela Shiffrin and the Swiss Corinne Suter, among others, had fallen heavily at the same point the day before, which is why the organizers slightly defused the delta jump before the second descent in Cortina d’Ampezzo on Saturday.