Swedish team takes costly fall in women’s X-country relay
The women’s 4×7.5-kilometre cross-country ski relay is underway and the Swedish team has just had a race-altering crash.
The team was favoured to win, but Ebba Andersson suffered a devastating spill, somersaulting in the soft snow and ripping a ski clean off as her binding gave way — a race-altering moment in the warm Tesero, Italy, conditions.
Andersson was coming around a corner downhill and caught loose snow, tumbling head over heels. As she got up, she realized her binding had come loose and had to go down the hill on one ski, with a coach bringing a new ski at the bottom but already 45 seconds had been lost, knocking Sweden way off the podium into eighth place. Norway is in first.
Andersson’s teammate, Frida Karlsson, could be seen at the bottom holding her head. Karlsson has already won two golds at Milano-Cortina. Andersson has picked up two silvers.
Conditions in Tesero, where cross-country skiing events are being held, have been challenging as temperatures sit above 0 C and crystallize the snow. Grooves can be seen in the snow, making balance difficult for skiers.
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