A 14-year-old British boy has died in an accident while skiing on a family holiday in northern Italy.
He was skiing the Falzarego intermediate red run in Cortina d’Ampezzo, about 20 miles south of the Austrian border, when he lost control, according to witnesses.
The boy’s parents were with him on the slope when he veered off and crashed into a tree, Italian media reported.
Paramedics from the nearby town of Pieve di Cadore reportedly attempted to save his life with defibrillators for half an hour but were unsuccessful.
He is understood to have been wearing a helmet while on the slope, which usually takes about 15 minutes to go from an altitude of around 2,732 metres to 2,105 metres.
Francesco Cataldo Giorgi, of the Happy Ski school in Cortina, told the Corriere Del Veneto: ‘The boy had gained a lot of speed, found a dip that was a sort of boost for him, he was no longer able to control the descent and crashed into the tree.
‘It was very bad luck. If he had fallen a few meters earlier or later, nothing would have happened.
‘Unfortunately, in this sport, a fall in the wrong place is enough to lose your life.’
According to the news site, the boy had been on holiday with his parents in the Bolzano region which is popular with skiers.
The accident reportedly happened at around 9.30am on Saturday.
It comes after a 23-year-old British skier was found dead at the bottom of a cliff in the French Alps after reportedly attending an après-ski event.
He was discovered at the popular ski resort of Avoriaz, in the Portes due Soleil region, in the early hours of February 17.
It is thought he tried to ski back to his accommodation alone after dusk and may have taken his skis off when conditions got too difficult, before falling down the cliff.
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