As someone who skis and has the abilities to ski difficult black diamonds, I know the dangers of skiing. My ability is nothing like the athletes who compete at the Olympic level. They are the best of the best in the world. I am just someone who does it for fun, yet I still understand the dangers that these skiers face. 

At a recent FIS (International Ski and Snowboard Federation) alpine event in Cortina, Italy, a lot of the top athletes crashed and got injured. One of the most notable, arguably the best women’s alpine skier of all time, Mikaela Shiffrin was competing in the downhill event when she crashed. 

When she crashed she went into the safety nets at a high rate of speed. The nets are in place to lower the risk of injuries but that risk is still there and is very high. She was unable to ski the rest of the weekend, and will not be skiing in the upcoming event in Kronplatz, Italy.

As a result of her crash  it is unclear when she will be able to ski again. Her coach mentioned that she is very sore, but does not appear to have any serious injuries.

Another American ski, Bella Wright, was hurt at this same event. She was airlifted after her fall and taken to the medical area on the mountain.

Wright did not sustain serious injuries but still had a lot. She was coughing up blood and had bruised legs. She also suffered a laceration on her face.

I have fallen when skiing and been saved by the nets that both Shiffrin and Wright went into. The nets are not forgiving at all and do not really help lessen the pain of injuries. My worst injury was at a ski resort in Vermont. I fell into the net. My face was bloodied, but the net did save me from falling off a 20 foot drop.

From my experience the nets are in places where there is a steep drop off on the mountain. These nets are there to make sure you don’t go falling down the mountain and less about lowering the chances of injury. 

These nets should have the purpose of both catching you if you fall, but also to lessen the chance of getting hurt. These two skiers have the best safety equipment in the world and are still getting hurt. 

I do not have that safety equipment, therefore I have a greater risk of getting hurt. Places that amateurs, such as myself, ski have the same nets as the professionals, and yet the skiers have less safety equipment. That is not okay.

This should be something that opens the eyes of people who are in charge of the safety of skiers who ski for fun, like me, but definitely to keep the professionals safe.