Sellier in hospital after rival’s blade slices her face at Winter Olympics

Short-track speedskater Kamila Sellier of Poland was immobilized on a stretcher and wheeled out of the Milano Ice Skating Arena on Friday night after a competitor’s blade sliced her above her left eye during the women’s 1,500 meters at the Milan Cortina Olympics.

Sellier went down along with 15-time Olympic medalist Ariana Fontana of Italy and American skater Kristen Santos-Griswold, who was penalized for an illegal lane pass that contributed to the accident.

That kept her from advancing through the quarter-final round.

The race was paused while Sellier received attention, a large white sheet blocking her from the crowd that was packed into the arena to see the final night of short-track speedskating.

She eventually gave a thumbs-up to the crowd as she was taken away, leaving a trail of blood in the final corner of the track that workers had to clean up during the break.

Polish officials said Sellier’s eye was OK. She received stitches at the arena before going to the hospital for more tests.

Fontana’s skinsuit was nicked up and she received some help from her physiotherapist on her left hip during the pause. She wound up finishing second to Hanne Desmet of Belgium, sending her through to the semi-final round.

She later advanced into the finals, narrowly edging Zhang Chutong at the finishing line.

Fontana, the reigning Olympic silver medalist in the 1,500, was trying to move into a tie with Norwegian cross-country skier Marit Bjorgen as the most decorated Winter Olympian. Fontana won gold in the 2,000-meter mixed relay and silver in the 500 meters and 3,000-meter relay earlier in the Milan Cortina Games.

Lochner on course for double gold: Germany’s Johannes Lochner stamped his authority all over the Four-Man bobsleigh at the Winter Olympics on Saturday, opening a huge halfway lead in a crash-strewn blue riband event as he seeks to complete a golden Cortina double.

The race suffered several delays after three crashes. The most spectacular saw Austrian Jakob Mandlbauer’s sled flipped upside down in dramatic style, with the pilot later cleared of suffering any serious injury after being checked in hospital.

Lochner, so long the bridesmaid behind German double defending champion Francesco Friedrich, created a 0.43-second gap on his compatriot and looks on course for a repeat of his victory in the Two-Man event.

Agencies