Famous American snowboarder Kyle Smein died in an avalanche in Japan
Another athlete died with him.
In the Japanese ski resort of Tsugaike, on the slopes of Mount Hakuba Norikura, a height of 2469 meters, an avalanche descended directly onto the track, which cost the lives of two athletes.
One of the dead was the world champion in halfpipe, American skier Kyle Smein. The second victim was an athlete from Austria, whose name is not known.
Meanwhile, the local authorities reported that the resort had experienced a heavy snowfall the day before, in connection with which they distributed an announcement about the threat of an avalanche.
Therefore, on the day of the tragedy, it was almost empty here. Only five athletes ventured onto the tracks. Three made it safely to safety, two, including Smain, were killed.
The 31-year-old American won a gold medal in the halfpipe at the 2015 Freestyle and Snowboard World Championships.