WELLINGTON – American-born Chinese skier and Olympic freestyle gold medalist Eileen Gu has suffered an injury while training in New Zealand, the latest in several setbacks for the 2022 Beijing Games champion.
The 21-year-old Gu was training at the Cardrona Skifield on New Zealand's South Island when the injury occurred on Aug. 15. Gu was flown the following day to the main South Island city of Christchurch for medical imaging.
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“Unfortunately, a very terrible accident occurred yesterday due to a man-made accident,” Gu posted on the Chinese social media site Weibo on which she has 6.7 million followers.
"Early this morning we flew to Christchurch for a medical imaging examination. I hope I can return to the snow soon, but I’m still waiting for the final confirmation of the expert team.“
No further details of Gu's injury or condition were available. Gu, who has not provided an update since her post on Aug. 16, had only recently returned from a shoulder injury which caused her to miss the Asian Winter Games.
San Francisco-born Gu changed her allegiance to China to compete at the 2022 Beijing Olympic Games at which she won two gold medals in freestyle skiing at the age of 18. She will represent China again at the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan and Cortina, Italy.
Gu's post on Weibo suggested an over-enthusiastic fan may have played a role in her injury.
“I have to concentrate fully during training, especially when I am preparing to start as it’s very dangerous to be interrupted," she said. "I also have to focus on picturing and imagining the moves while on the cable car.
"In order to save time, I don’t have lunch breaks and try to use the bathroom as little as possible. So please don’t record or take photos while I’m training.”
Gu was the second-highest earning female athlete in 2023 with $22.1 million, behind tennis star Iga Swiatek, according to the Forbes list.
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AP sports: https://apnews.com/sports