Park City: Sarah Burke injured in halfpipe fall

Sarah Burke sustained an injury from a fall in the halfpipe at Park City, Utah, on Tuesday. She was airlifted to the University of Utah hospital in Salt Lake City.

A University of Utah hospital spokesperson confirmed Burke's admittance to the hospital but said they cannot give any additional information on her condition at this time.

Andy Miller, communications manager at Park City Mountain Resort, confirmed with ESPN that the Canadian freestyle skier was training in the Eagle Superpipe at Park City Mountain Resort. After a crash, she was treated by ski patrol, transported to base patrol and then airlifted.

Burke is the defending Winter X Games Women's Ski SuperPipe champion, having won eight medals (four of them gold) in Winter X SuperPipe contests throughout her career.

The Canadian freestyle team sent a Twitter message Tuesday afternoon saying Burke had a "serious injury."

A pioneer in women's freeskiing since 2000, Burke has won an ESPY award for best female action sports athlete and she was the first female skier to land a 1080 in competition.

In a recent interview with ESPN, Burke said, "Sometimes I do wonder why I am still [competing]. But the fact is I still really, really love it. I love skiing, and I got a taste for the top when I was young and don't want to let it go."

Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.

Source: http://espn.go.com/action/freeskiing...-halfpipe-fall

They just reported he death. Sounds like she died from complications of the injury, specifically a lack of oxygen to the brain.

She is an interesting case study. She was doing ground-breaking work yet sustained two major spinal and brain injuries, the final one resulting in her young fatality. Seems like so many of the competitive sports are pushing the boundaries further and further to maintain audiences and a competitive edge. One always has to wonder, mostly in a rhetorical manner, as there is likely no clean answer, how far individuals may willing push that boundary. The super-pipes are now more than 22 feet tall.

Interesting thoughts. As always sad to hear of the death of a young athlete but glad folks aren't calling it a tragedy, as she was engaged, knowingly, in some serious "edgework"

Phillip

RIPE!

(that's Rest In Peace, eh?)


SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — Canadian freestyle skier Sarah Burke died Thursday, nine days after crashing at the bottom of the superpipe during a training run in Utah.

Burke, who lived near Whistler in British Columbia, was 29. She was injured Jan. 10 while training at a personal sponsor event at the Park City Mountain resort.

Tests revealed Burke sustained "irreversible damage to her brain due to lack of oxygen and blood after cardiac arrest," according to a statement released by Burke's publicist on behalf of her family.

A four-time Winter X Games champion, Burke crashed on the same halfpipe where snowboarder Kevin Pearce suffered a traumatic brain injury during a training accident on Dec. 31, 2009.

As a result of her fall, Burke tore her vertebral artery, which led to severe bleeding on the brain, causing her to go into cardiac arrest on the scene, where CPR was performed, according to the statement by publicist Nicole Wool.

Wool said Burke's organs and tissues were donated per her wishes.

"The family expresses their heartfelt gratitude for the international outpouring of support they have received from all the people Sarah touched," the statement said.

https://encrypted-tbn0.google.com/im...CbIq08b6T856nN

Bummer! Sad to see a young athlete's life ended for making a mistake in the halfpipe.

That sucks