Skier Cyprien Sarrazin has come out of intensive care and is beginning “a long recovery period”

Seriously injured in the head after a fall in training on Friday December 27, 2024 in Bormio (Italy), French skier Cyprien Sarrazin left the intensive care unit of Sondalo hospital in Lombardy, announced the French ski federation ( FFS) in a press release, Thursday January 2. “The MRI carried out on December 31 suggests repatriation to France on Friday January 3 and hospitalization in the neurosurgery department of the Médipole de Lyon”explained Stéphane Bulle, the doctor of the French alpine ski team.

Cyprien Sarrazin, 30, underwent surgery to resolve an intracranial hematoma on December 27, after suffering a heavy fall on the slope of the Alpine Ski World Cup stage in Bormio. During the second training session, the skier from Dévoluy (Hautes-Alpes) was unbalanced by a movement in the terrain and literally flew away before hitting the snow violently and being stopped by the safety nets after a long slide. He was evacuated by helicopter after a long intervention by the emergency services.

“Undetermined unavailability”

Several other skiers were injured during this stage in Bormio, on the Stelvio, one of the most feared slopes of the circuit, which will host the men's alpine skiing events of the 2026 Olympic Games, including the preparation and the lack of homogeneity of its snow cover were once again criticized.

In its press release published Thursday, the FFS indicates that “the duration of [l’]unavailability [de Sarrazin] is currently undetermined. “A long period of recovery and then rehabilitation begins”she warned. Not sure that the Haut-Alpin, second in the general ranking in downhill during the 2023-2024 season, will be sufficiently recovered for the World Championships in Saalbach (Austria), from February 4 to 16.

The rest of the high-alpine skier's medical assessment is “very reassuring”, concludes the French Ski Federation. “Despite the violence of the shock, no other lesions were noted. »