French skier Cyprien Sarrazin to undergo surgery after suffering head injury in Italian fall

Sarrazin was transported to hospital by helicopter after losing control during his second practice run

France's Cyprien Sarrazin skies during a training session before crashing ahead of the men's downhill race of the FIS Alpine Skiing World Cup event, in Bormio, Italy. Photograph:  which he won just a year ago. (Photo by Fabrice Coffrini/AFP via Getty Images
France's Cyprien Sarrazin skies during a training session before crashing ahead of the men's downhill race of the FIS Alpine Skiing World Cup event, in Bormio, Italy. Photograph: which he won just a year ago. (Photo by Fabrice Coffrini/AFP via Getty Images

French skier Cyprien Sarrazin will have surgery to drain a bleed in his brain after falling while training for the World Cup downhill in Bormio, Italy, the French Ski Federation (FFS) said on Friday.

Sarrazin, who won at the venue last year, was transported to hospital by helicopter after losing control during his second practice run, bouncing off the surface and sliding a long way. French media reports said he was conscious after the fall.

“Following further examinations and the progress of Cyprien’s clinical examination, it has been decided, in agreement with the Italian surgeons, to operate on Cyprien this evening in order to drain the subdural haematoma,” the FFS said in a statement.

French Alpine skiing team doctor Stephane Bulle had earlier said Sarrazin was conscious but remained under surveillance.

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The 30-year-old had set the fastest time on the first training run the day before.

Sarrazin won three downhill races in the previous World Cup, along with a Super-G race in January to finish fifth overall.

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