The tragedy occurred in Japan: the former world champion was cross-country skiing off-piste. An Austrian skier also died
Former freestyle world champion Kyle Smaine died in an avalanche last Sunday in Japan. The 31-year-old American was cross-country skiing off the slopes, along with thirteen other people, in a town in the prefecture of Nagano, when an avalanche caused by those skiing above them overwhelmed three people around 2.30pm.
Another death
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Among these precisely Smaine for which there was nothing to do. An Austrian skier, whose personal details have not yet been disclosed, also died with him. A third person was miraculously saved after being buried under five feet of snow for 25 minutes. Smaine was a resident of Lake Tahoe, California, and had recently posted on social media shots of his trip to Nagano to enjoy the “incredible quality of the snow.” Which was fatal to him. The authorities of the ski town of Otari had also launched an avalanche warning after the heavy snowfalls of the last few days. Smaine had won gold in the freestyle (halfpipe) at the Kreischberg World Championships in 2015.
January 31, 2023 (change January 31, 2023 | 10:39)
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