Polish speedskater Kamila Sellier has undergone surgery after a gruesome accident saw her face sliced open and bloodied by a rival’s blade at the Winter Olympics.
Sellier, racing in the quarter-finals of the women’s 1500m, went down along with 15-time Olympic medalist Ariana Fontana of Italy and American skater Kristen Santos-Griswold.
But as Santos-Griswold fell, her skate caught Sellier and sliced her under her left eye.
The race was subsequently paused as the Polish athlete received attention from medics behind a white sheet, with Sellier eventually wheeled out the arena on a stretcher.
Sellier was able to give a thumbs up to the crowds as she departed, but left behind her a trail of blood in the corner of the track that required cleaning up.
Polish officials later confirmed that Sellier’s eye was okay and that the athlete had received stitches at the arena before going to the hospital for more tests and surgery.
In a statement to the BBC, a spokesperson for the Polish team said: ‘Kamila had surgery last night. She’s in good condition. We’re waiting for further tests today, to check her eye for any signs of damage.’
WARNING: THE VIDEO BELOW CONTAINS GRAPHIC CONTENT
Speaking on Saturday morning, Polish Olympic Committee president Konrad Niedzwiecki told Eurosport: ‘Kamila underwent surgery to repair the damaged bone, everything was cleaned.
‘She woke up this morning with significant swelling, she didn’t sleep much last night.
‘According to what the head of the medical mission, Dr. Hubert Krysztofiak, told me this evening, she will undergo eye movement tests today.
‘Yesterday, the eye passed the first tests, and that was the most important thing for us.’
Meanwhile, Sellier’s teammate, Natalia Maliszewska, appeared shaken by the accident, telling reporters: ‘My thoughts are with her. I can’t think of anything else.’
‘These aren’t common accidents, but they do happen,# Gabriela Topolska, another of Sellier’s teammates, added. ‘Kamila already has one of them, from a skate on her face. Kamila has a cut in her skin, with stitches.’
At the end of the 1500m event, it was Dutch skater, Antoinette Rijpma-de Jong, who claimed a surprise gold, with Norway’s Ragne Wiklund and Canada’s Valerie Maltais taking home silver and bronze, respectively.
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