Teenage alpine skiing champion Matilde Lorenzi has died in a training accident in Italy.
Italy’s defense ministry said Lorenzi, 19, fell while skiing on a slope in the northern city of Val Senales.
Lorenzi was the Italian junior champion last season, and her older sister Lucrezia is also a skier, according to the official Olympic website.
Tributes poured in following her death, including messages from Olympic skiing stars.
Former U.S. Olympic skier Lindsey Vonn described Lorenzi’s death as a “tragic loss” and said her “thoughts are going out to (her) family.”
“I have so much love for my family, friends and teammates,” added U.S. Olympian Mikaela Shiffrin.
The International Ski and Snowboard Federation (FIS) said, “We express our deepest condolences over the tragic death of Matilde Lorenzi.”
“FIS stands alongside her family, friends and all who cherished Mathilde and mourns her memory today and always,” he added.
Lorenzi, who was assigned to the Italian military, participated in the Junior World Championships last season and placed 6th in the downhill competition and 8th in the super-G competition.
She also competed on the second-tier European Cup circuit.
The accident comes just months after World Cup skier Jean Daniel Pession and his girlfriend Elisa Arlian tragically died after falling more than 600 meters from an Italian mountain.
