Julie Pomagalski, a French snowboarder who represented her country at the 2002 and 2006 Winter Olympics, died in an avalanche on Tuesday, the French ski federation announced on Wednesday. She was 40 years old.
According to The New York Times, Pomagalski was snowboarding with a group of four on the Gemsstock mountain in the Swiss Alps when a layer of snow came off for unexplained reasons. The group had practiced freeriding, that is, moving through natural and untreated terrain outside a typical mountain course.
Pomagalski and another member of the group, Bruno Cutelli, were completely buried when authorities arrived with a helicopter and search dogs. Another person was reportedly hospitalized after being dragged.
The French Olympic team addressed the tragedy in a tweet, saying the team is in mourning:
All the pensées de l’équipe de France Olympique et du CNOSF come to the family of Julie Pomagalski, ses proches, à @FedFranceSki. The disparity tragique de Julie, champion of the snowboarding moniker et Olympienne, laisse l’Equipe de France OLY in daril de l’une des siennes. pic.twitter.com/BtXqH398io
– France Olympique (@FranceOlympique) March 23, 2021
A translation:
All thoughts of the France Olympique team and CNOSF go to Julie Pomagalski’s family, to those close to her, to @FedFranceSki. The tragic death of Julie, snowboarding and Olympic world champion, leaves France’s OLY team in mourning for one of their own.
Born in La Tronche, France, Pomagalski came from a line of ski and snowboard enthusiasts and soon reached the top of the world stage. At the age of 19, she won the world snowboard cross championship in 1999, then won a silver in the giant parallel slalom at the 2003 world championship.
Pomagalski was twice Olympic, finishing sixth in the giant parallel slalom at the 2002 Olympics in Salt Lake City and at the 2006 Olympics in Torino.
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