Olympics competition briefly paused after Chinese snowboarder Liu Jiayu is injured in dramatic halfpipe crash

Chinese snowboarder Liu Jiayu took a superior autumn during an Olympic qualifying tally Wednesday. 

Competition astatine the Milan Cortina Winter Olympics was concisely suspended portion Liu remained mostly motionless connected her backmost successful the snowfall astatine the bottommost of the halfpipe. The toed borderline of Liu's snowboard appeared to get caught successful the snow, sending her slamming, face-first, into the bottommost of the halfpipe.

An exigency sled was utilized to region the 33-year-old from the country for further evaluation. Liu was capable to debar large injuries to her spine, The Associated Press reported, citing sources with cognition of the nonrecreational snowboarder’s aesculapian report.

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Liu Jiayu of the People's Republic of China reacts aft her qualifying tally successful the women's snowboard halfpipe during the Milano Cortina 2026 Olympic Winter Games astatine Livigno Snow Park Feb. 11, 2026 successful Livigno, Italy. (Joe Camporeale/Imagn Images)

It is believed that Liu maintained consciousness aft the scary fall. 

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Liu was trying to decorativeness her 2nd and last qualifying tally with a 900-degree spin. After she slammed into the halfpipe, her legs and committee snapped implicit her back, a wreck known successful snowboarding arsenic a "scorpion."

Liu Jiayu of the People's Republic of China reacts aft her tally successful women's snowboard halfpipe during the Milano Cortina 2026 Olympic Winter Games astatine Livigno Snow Park connected Feb. 11, 2026 successful Livigno, Italy. (Nathan Ray Seebeck/Imagn Images)

Riders deterioration protective gear, including helmets, during competitions. Despite the precautions, unsafe crashes stay a beardown — and sometimes life-threatening — possibility. If the caput oregon cervix is impacted during a fall, the hazard of superior wounded rises sharply. 

Liu Jiayu of China competes successful the women's snowboard halfpipe qualification astatine the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympic Games astatine Livigno Snow Park Feb. 11, 2026 successful Livigno, Italy. (Ian MacNicol/Getty Images)

Former satellite champion freestyle skier Dave Murray died successful 1990 aft suffering superior injuries successful a halfpipe clang successful Utah. In 2010, Kevin Pearce sustained encephalon injuries portion grooming for the Vancouver Olympics.

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Earlier this week, Australian snowboard transverse racer Cam Bolton was hospitalized. Representatives for Bolton confirmed helium was dealing with aggregate unchangeable cervix fractures.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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