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Olympic freestyle gold medalist Eileen Gu has suffered an injury while training in New Zealand. Gu, 21, was training at the Cardrona Alpine Resort on New Zealand’s South Island on August 15 when the incident occurred. As the South China Morning Post reports, eyewitnesses said Gu seemed to be seriously injured and was taken to the hospital on a stretcher.
“Unfortunately, a very terrible accident occurred yesterday due to a man-made accident,” Gu posted on the Chinese social media site Weibo. “Early this morning we flew to Christchurch for a medical imaging examination. I hope I can return to the snow soon, but I’m still waiting for the final confirmation of the expert team.”
Since then, there have been no updates as to Gu’s condition, or even elaboration as to the nature of the injury. However, Gu’s post on Weibo hints at a possible fan interaction playing a role in the injury. Furthermore, a Weibo user claimed he had been on the slope that day filming Gu’s training, which drew criticism from fans.
“I have to concentrate fully during training, especially when I am preparing to start as it’s very dangerous to be interrupted,” wrote Gu. “I also have to focus on picturing and imagining the moves while on the cable car.
“In order to save time, I don’t have lunch breaks and try to use the bathroom as little as possible. So please don’t record or take photos while I’m training.”
This marks the latest setback in a difficult year for Gu. She was injured at the Aspen X Games, and then subsequently injured again while training for World Cup competitions, which forced her to withdraw from the Asian Winter Games in Harbin.
Though she is American-born, Gu competes for China. In the lead-up to the 2022 Beijing Olympic Games, she changed her allegiance to China, and ultimately won two gold medals for the country. She will compete under the Chinese flag again at the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan and Cortina, Italy.
