In her native place of Switzerland, Olympic snowboarder Sophie Hediger lost her life Monday in an avalanche, leaving behind her family and partner
The winter sports union Swiss-Ski said that Sophie Hediger, 26, was caught in an avalanche while “freeriding,” or snowboarding on natural terrain, in Arosa, a town and resort in eastern Switzerland.
Who is Sophie Hediger as Swiss snowboarder passes away, cause of death, bio, age, family, partner and Instagram
Hediger was hit by the avalanche after leaving a blocked black diamond slope on Monday afternoon with another individual, local police told ABC News.
After alerting emergency personnel, the other person found Hediger buried in the avalanche field a few hours later. According to ABC News, she passed away at the scene of the accident following fruitless attempts at CPR.
After the request of Hediger’s family and partner, Swiss-Ski stated that it would not share any more information or specifics regarding the incident.
“For the Swiss-Ski family, the tragic death of Sophie Hediger cast a dark shadow over the Christmas days,” Walter Reusser, alpine director for Swiss-Ski said in a statement.
26-year-old Sophie Anna Hediger was born on December 14,1998 and she passed away on December 23, 2024. Sophie has kept details about her background private.
She was dating Swiss ice hockey player Dario Wuthrich at the time of her death.
Hediger was swept up in an avalanche on Monday, December 23 in the Swiss mountain resort town of Arosa. She grew up in Horgen, Switzerland, said the Federation, roughly 80 miles northwest of Arosa.
Sophie Hediger career
Sophie Hediger participated in the mixed team snowboard cross and women’s snowboard cross at the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing. In the years 2018–19, 2019–20, 2020–21, and 2021–22, she participated in the FIS Snowboard World Cup.
In the 2023–24 snowboard cross season, she got placed on the podium for the first time. In a snowboard cross, four to six competitors compete across a course that usually grows narrow and may have a variety of jumps, drops, and spins. After roughly 60 to 90 seconds, the half-kilometre race comes to an end.
In March, Hediger was placed third at another World Cup competition in Gudauri, Georgia. Soon after, she reported that she had “crashed in Sierra, Nevada and injured her shoulder.” Following surgery, Hediger stated that she “will come back stronger next season.”
She finished 19th in the Beijing Games, and her team placed seventh in mixed snowboard cross. “Looking forward to great races” at the 2026 Winter Olympics in Italy, Hediger wrote on her website.