Italian skier Matteo Franzoso dies after head injuries caused from training crash – The New York Times

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Italian skier Matteo Franzoso has died at the age of 25 in Santiago, Chile after a brain injury caused by a training crash.
The Italian winter sports federation (FISI) confirmed on Monday that Franzoso had been thrown forward over two rows of nets after a miscued jump, hitting a fence around seven meters away from the course. Although reached by medical services and placed in a medically induced coma, he died from a cerebral edema, brain swelling.
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FISI said in a release on their website that he had arrived at the La Parva ski track, where the incident happened, for training with his fellow sprinters on September 6.
“We are speechless,” the mayor of Sestriere, Gianni Poncet, said in an official statement on the municipality’s website. “Matteo was an exceptional young man, an example for all young people both as an athlete and in everyday life.
“The circumstances of the accident bring to mind another recent loss, less than a year ago, which took away another young woman who grew up competitively in our mountains: Matilde Lorenzi.”
Franzoso had grown up skiing in Sestriere, Italy, the same place that 19-year-old Lorenzi had skied, who also died from a training crash last year.
“Skiing, our sport, must radically change in terms of safety, equipment, and protection to protect our children,” the mayor continued. “The entire environment has made giant strides, ski races are increasingly competitive, while unfortunately, in terms of safety, the same has not happened.
“This can no longer be accepted: we must stop and reflect, both for the good of top athletes and, more generally, for all those who enjoy the wonderful world of snow. Goodbye Matteo, goodbye Matilde, you will always be in our hearts.”
Franzoso competed in last March’s World Cup, after making his debut in 2021, and won the Italian combined downhill skiing title in 2023.
American Olympic champion skier Lindsey Vonn was among to pay tribute to the Italian.
“This is incredibly sad,” she said on her social media. “I was skiing this exact slope 3 weeks ago … RIP Matteo. My sincere condolences to his family and loved ones.”
(Photo: Alexis Boichard / Agence Zoom/Getty Images)
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Jessica Hopkins is a Junior News Editor at The Athletic. She previously contributed to features and investigations across cycling, athletics and football. Follow Jessica on Twitter @JessMCHopkins

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