SKIER DIES AT WORLDS: Aspen’s John Nicoletta killed in fall
Conversation came to a stop. A lull fell over the hundreds of skiers watching the World Freeskiing Championships at Alyeska the second John Nicoletta hit the rock. He then tumbled three or four times in the air before hitting the snow and sliding, his body limp, for several hundred feet.
The worst fears were realized at an athlete meeting held at the Sitzmark at 7:00 pm Alaska Standard Time. John Nicoletta, a professional skier out of Aspen, Colorado, is dead at 27.
“We extend our deepest sympathies to John’s family, girlfriend and friends,” says Adam Comey, president of Mountain Sports International, promoters of the event. “This is a deep blow to the freeskiing community.”
Before the news was even released, however, competitors and spectators were prepared for the worst. When the patrol sled reached the finish area, patrol stopped to attempt CPR again before taking Nicoletta down to a pick up zone where a Chucagh Powder Guides helicopter evacuated him. The music never restarted, competitors were slouched over, crying or staring off in disbelief.
This marks the first time in the seventeen-year history of competitive big mountain skiing that a skier has died in North America.
This accident comes a year after Neal Valiton became the first competitor to die in a big mountain competition when he fell during a competition in Tignes, France. A week prior a skier was seriously injured during Telepalooza, a telemark freeskiing competition, also at Alyeska, an incident that was slammed in the Anchorage press. That contest was not affiliated with the World Freeskiing Championships.
Nicoletta skied in an area that had been skied by several competitors earlier in the contest. He fell for about 20 feet over an exposed, rocky area, impacting rock, then tumbled and slid several hundred feet before coming to a rest. Alyeska Ski Patrol was on the scene in minutes, and transported him down by sled to a pick up area, where a helicopter evacuated him. As an ominous reminder, his ski remained stuck in the snow near the fatal impact zone for about an hour.
The competition was suspended after Nicoletta’s run, and will resume on Saturday. At a meeting with all competitors held Friday night the response was overwhelming in favor of continuing the contest. Remaining competitors will run on the same venue on Alyeska’s Headwall. Whether or not there will be a super final will be decided after the finish of round one.
“This wasn’t an accident or a mistake, this was an incident,” says Dak Willams Winter Sports Event Director. “I think the proper place to come to terms with the scenario as a collective group is at the top of the mountain and not the bottom. All of the athlete pool—not just those who are competing, but those who competed today, or those who are in our community—are going up there tomorrow to reflect on losing a family member.”
