Vincent Kriechmayr holds the associations accountable for safety. © APA/afp / PATRICK T. FALLON

Kriechmayr criticizes associations: “La Parva is extremely dangerous”

Following the tragic death of Italian downhill skier Matteo Franzoso, Vincent Kriechmayr criticizes the safety concept in the South American training camp.

11 October 2025

From: apa/sn

"The major associations have made it a bit too easy for themselves. They have to accept the criticism," said Kriechmayr. While there's no such thing as 100 percent safety in downhill racing, "in Chile, where everyone trains, where 100 skiers are skiing downhill, it has to be possible."

One association alone couldn't shoulder the massive costs, said Kriechmayr. The speed veteran hopes "that the major associations will coordinate more, work together, and invest more in safety in the future. We ship so many tons of skis and all that gear to Chile." If necessary, he'll lend a hand himself to improve safety. "Then I'll help with the drill to remove the wooden fences."

Training track in La Parva “extremely dangerous”

In September, three days before his 26th birthday, Franzoso suffered a serious fall during a jump during training. He broke through two safety nets and crashed into a fence. A hospital in Santiago diagnosed him with a traumatic brain injury, and Franzoso was placed in an induced coma. Ultimately, however, doctors were unable to save the athlete's life.

“The track in La Parva is incredibly dangerous, to be honest.” Vincent Kriechmayr

Even though no one had anticipated the accident site beforehand, Kriechmayr says the track in La Parva is "extremely dangerous, to be honest." In addition to the Austrians and Italians, the Swiss also trained there.

ÖSV for “coordinated approach” of the associations

"Vinc is absolutely right, the associations have to accept the criticism," said ÖSV Secretary General Christian Scherer with understanding. "We started delivering safety equipment like safety nets to Chile this year. Was it sufficient? It was a first step. But the associations need a coordinated approach." Scherer told APA that it is their job to provide the framework for safe training and not shift the responsibility to the local ski resort operators.

Matteo Franzoso was killed in an accident in La Parva.

In any case, the athletes were given a stark reminder of the dangers of their sport before the Olympic season. "Of course, it affects you when something so brutal happens," said Marco Schwarz. "You pay more attention to what's going on to the left and right of the track. We also trained there, next to the wooden fences." However, the tragedy had no impact on his own speed ambitions. "Of course, you're more alarmed. But I feel relatively safe during the races."

Kilde hopes for responsible athletes

When it comes to prevention, Aleksander Aamodt Kilde believes that, in addition to the federations and the FIS, the skiers themselves have a responsibility. "If a net is positioned directly in the fall line or something is dangerous, as an athlete you have to say: 'Coach, that looks difficult,'" said the Norwegian downhill star. In principle, even critical situations end well 99 percent of the time.

"But that one percent is French, is Matilde, is Poisson," said Kilde, who is working on his comeback. The Italian Matilde Lorenzi (19) died in October 2024 in South Tyrol after a training crash, and the Frenchman David Poisson (35) died in November 2017 while training in Canada.