Chinese snowboarder Liu Jiayu received treatment for a head injury but suffered no major injuries to her spine after a scary fall in Olympic halfpipe qualifying Wednesday, people familiar with her medical report told The Associated Press.
The 33-year-old Liu had to be carried off the halfpipe on a stretcher after the toe edge of her snowboard got caught in the snow, sending her slamming, face-first, into the bottom of the halfpipe. The people who spoke to AP requested anonymity because China’s Olympic committee had not released information.
Liu was trying to finish her second and final run of qualifying with a 900-degree spin. After she slammed to the halfpipe, her legs and board snapped over her back — a wreck known in snowboarding parlance as a “Scorpion.”
Action on the halfpipe halted for about 10 minutes while medical personnel attended to her. The people who knew about the medical assessment said she never lost consciousness.
The injury came two days after Australian snowboardcross racer Cam Bolton was taken to the hospital with what the team said were two stable neck fractures.
Liu has been confirmed to have no spinal abnormalities following medical examinations, state news agency Xinhua said.
“I just finished a check-up at the hospital and there’s nothing seriously wrong. Everything is fine,” Liu said on social media, alongside a smiling selfie of herself wearing a hospital gown while making a two-finger “V” sign.
Chinese fans expressed relief, with one user commenting that she had been checking the internet “all day” waiting for information on Liu’s state.
“Your safety is the best news. Get well soon,” the person posted.
In the halfpipe competitors perform a series of tricks while snowboarding down a slope with a semi-cylindrical shape. They are scored on the breadth and difficulty of the jumps.
China Sports Daily hailed the five-time Olympian’s “fighting spirit”.
“Liu Jiayu has always gritted her teeth and fought to the very end for the honour of her country and for her beloved snowboarding,” it said.
The newspaper said Liu had suffered numerous injuries throughout her career — including an old lumbar fracture that has not yet fully healed — and has previously undergone three major shoulder surgeries.