Podladtchikov pulls out of Olympics
Aug 31, 2018·Snowboard Park & Pipe
Defending halfpipe champion Iouri Podladtchikov has announced to refrain from competing in the Olympic halfpipe event.
The Swiss snowboarder said in a press conference that the injuries he had sustained in a fall at the X Games on 28 January 2018 have been even more sever than initially announced.
Podladtchikov explained that he had suffered brain bleeding. “When I got this diagnose I knew hat I had sustained a severe injury, and that participating in the Olympics would be a major threat to my health.”
Following the MRI result, the snowboard pro underwent further examinations and also consulted various experts before giving it a try in the first halfpipe training session on Friday.
“With all the information I gathered over the past days – including my training runs – I can say that competing would be neither safe nor responsible.”
Although a second MRI on Thursday had shown a significant improvement, Podladtchikov said that “my condition is not as stable as it should be to compete on such a level which is needed for a contest like this.”
Podladtchikov travelled back home to Switzerland on Saturday.
