Olympic icon Eileen Gu has suffered a serious injury after a scary accident while training, she revealed.

The freestyle skier, originally from the United States before choosing to represent China in the 2022 Winter Olympics, recounted a ‘very horrific accident’ that occurred during a training session in New Zealand.

The prominent athlete, who holds the record for the most freestyle skiing World Cup titles, was airlifted to Christchurch Hospital for further evaluation.

Eyewitnesses reported seeing Gu being taken to the hospital on a stretcher, according to the South China Morning Post.

‘Unfortunately, a very terrible accident occurred yesterday due to human error,’ Gu wrote on Chinese social media platform Weibo.

‘I hope I can return to the snow soon, but I’m still waiting for confirmation from the expert team.’ 

Olympic icon Eileen Gu has suffered a serious injury after a scary accident while training

The freestyle skier, pictured at the 2023 Victoria’s Secret show, was training in New Zealand

However, the 21-year-old appeared to suggest that an overly-eager fan was to blame for the incident. 

“I must concentrate deeply during training, especially when gearing up for the start,” the two-time Olympic gold medalist expressed, while expressing gratitude to her supporters.

“Being disrupted poses significant danger. Even while on the chairlift, I need to stay focused on visualizing and mentally rehearsing my movements,” she continued. “To maximize training time, I’ve been skipping lunch and minimizing bathroom breaks.”

However, she did not confirm any further details. 

Gu, who debuted in Sports Illustrated Swimsuit this year, withdrew from the big air and halfpipe events at X Games Aspen 2025 following another incident where she fell and got injured.

Her training session in New Zealand reportedly marked her first time back on the snow since her withdrawal. 

At just 21 years old, Gu already has an impressive resume, having secured two golds and a silver at the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing, as well as 15 World Cup titles and four X Games medals.

Growing up in San Francisco, learning to ski in Lake Tahoe, and being immersed in American culture, Gu represented Team USA until the age of 15 when she switched to the country of her mother’s birth. She’s fluent in both Mandarin and English.

Born in the United States, Gu switched to represent her mom’s homeland China at age 15 

The Olympic champion earned her Sports Illustrated Swimsuit debut earlier this year 

The 21-year-old has enjoyed lavish endorsements away from the slopes

Born in the States to an American father, Gu’s mother Yan, a keen skier herself, was the catalyst for her career on the slopes, booking her lessons so her daughter could keep up with her. 

And under the Five-star Red Flag Gu’s career has soared – despite the controversy surrounding her switch. 

Despite her switch, Gu’s career has continued to blossom away from the slopes as well with American brands continuing to throw endorsement deals at her. 

Over the years, she has enjoyed significant sponsorship deals from American brands like Cadillac, Tiffany’s, Visa, Therabody, Victoria’s Secret and Oakley.

Last year, Gu emerged as the second highest paid female athlete, according to Sportico. She earned a staggering $22million in 2024, mainly from her endorsement deals.

The skier beat out the likes of Simone Biles and Caitlin Clark on the rankings with tennis sensation Coco Gauff coming out on top. 

Having been named to the Time100 & Forbes 30 under 30 lists, Gu has earned 2 million followers on Instagram.  

Meanwhile, in China, where she is known as ‘Gu Ailing’, ‘the snow princess’, Gu boasts a massive 6.7 million followers on Weibo.  

Gu has won two gold medals and a silver at the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing, along with 15 World Cup titles and four X Games medals

Last year, Gu emerged as the second highest paid female athlete, earning a staggering $22m

Throw in a place at Stanford and a Sports Illustrated Swimsuit gig, and Gu is considered the golden girl of winter sports. 

Before this weekend’s accident, Gu had been expected to next compete in December at this season’s Snow League, where she is also a brand ambassador, at Secret Garden in Beijing.

The incident comes just six months before next year’s Winter Olympics, which will take place at Milano Cortina in Italy from February 6 to 22.