American skier Nina O’Brien shared pictures from her hospital bed as she recovers from a horrific broken leg injury sustained at the Beijing Winter Olympics.
Considered the top American alpine racer after Mikaela Shiffrin was disqualified, O’Brien spectacularly flipped over the finish line after she clipped a gate and broke her left leg before being carried off the course on a stretcher.
It was later confirmed that the 24-year-old suffered a compound fracture of her tibia and fibula.
She will return to the States for further treatment after being replaced by teammate AJ Hurt in the slalom race on Wednesday.
“Well, I gave everything I had and maybe too much,” O’Brien said. “I keep replaying it in my head, wishing I'd skied those last few gates differently. But here we are.
"I had surgery last night to stabilise my tibia, which unfortunately was an open fracture through my leg. I’ll get the rest fixed at home, but for now I'm in great hands.
“I want to say thank you to everyone who's taken care of me, especially those who rushed to me in the finish and my doctors and nurses in Yanqing.
“I’m a little heartbroken but also feeling so much love. My phone is flooded with messages. Waking up to those words means more than you can know.”
The U.S. Ski & Snowboard Team took to Twitter to update followers, writing the statement: “Nina would like to express her gratitude to all of the people who assisted her so quickly in the finish area at the race, and especially to the doctors and nurses at the hospital who have taken such great care of her.”
Following the crash, the team added that O'Brien was worried about 'delaying the race' and wanted to know 'how fast she was skiing'. Petra Vlhova won Slovakia's first-ever Alpine Olympic gold in the slalom.
The American’s injury is just one of several horror injuries to occur in Beijing this month, with an ice hockey referee spilling blood from her mouth after being nicked in the face by a wayward stick.
Cianna Lieffers was the accidental recipient of a blow to the mouth by the awry stick during Canada's 4-2 win over America.
Regardless, Lieffers incredibly managed to carry on with her official duties after getting assessed by Canada's medical team.
