Kristjan Ilves sidelined with spinal injury

Estonia’s best Nordic Combined athlete Kristjan Ilves will have to sit the first competitions of this year’s World Cup season out, as the 23-year-old injured his spine during a fall at ski jumping portion of the Norwegian championships in Falun (SWE) one week ago. Ilves has a cooperation with the Norwegian team and has been training with them over the summer.

Due to a high number of competitors and unusually warm weather, the conditions on the jumping hill in Falun changed rapidly during the event, causing Ilves and also Magnus Krog, who was jumping after the Estonian, to fall on the soft landing slope. While Krog went to the hospital immediately, Ilves did not feel anything particularly out of order next to the usual pains and aches after a ski jumping fall. One and a half hours after the incident, Ilves decided to go to the hospital as well.

The examination revealed a spinal cord injury in the neck. Fortunately, nothing is fractured but Ilves will have to hold his neck completely immobile to facilitate the best healing process for the next two week.

“It will cause some problems while sleeping but it has to be dealt with now”, Ilves said after the diagnosis. In a month time, I will go for a new examination and then it will become clear how to proceed further. I still hope to be returning to competition in the new year.”

Ilves’s competitor Magnus Krog was luckier than the Estonian. While he also received a trauma to the neck, a thorough checkup at the hospital did not reveal any damage.