A men's World Cup super-G got off to an inauspicious start Sunday as the first skier crashed dramatically on the slope in Bormio, Italy, set to be used for the 2026 Olympics.
Gino Caviezel became the third skier airlifted to a hospital off the Stelvio slope this weekend after the Swiss skier crashed around 45 seconds into his run. The 32-year-old Caviezel hit a gate and tumbled down the slope but was conscious as he came to a halt, appearing to point several times to his knee as first-aid personnel rushed to help him.
Caviezel remained lying on the piste and was treated before being airlifted.
The Swiss ski federation said Caviezel was flown back to Switzerland by Swiss Air Rescue and that "initial examinations show a shoulder dislocation, which has been put back in place, as well as a complex knee injury, which is still being investigated further."
French standout Cyprien Sarrazin and Italian Pietro Zazzi were taken off the slope by helicopter after crashing in separate incidents in downhill training Friday.
Sarrazin underwent surgery to drain a bleed near the brain while Zazzi had an operation on his leg.
Sunday's race was interrupted for just under 20 minutes before Fredrik Moeller of Norway claimed his first World Cup victory, finishing 0.20 seconds ahead of Austrian skier Vincent Kriechmayr.
A day after recording his first World Cup win in the downhill, Alexis Monney finished third, just four hundredths of a second behind Kriechmayr.
Marco Odermatt still leads the super-G standings but has seen his advantage cut to just five points by Moeller. Odermatt leads the overall standings by 161 points.
The Associated Press and Reuters contributed to this report.