After an accident at an Austrian skiing resort, a professional snowboarder died of fatal head injuries.
Marko Grilc from Slovenia was 38 years old and didn’t have a helmet. He fell onto a snowcovered rock on Tuesday.
According to Tyrol police, Austria, a man aged 38 from Slovenia was killed in an accident when he was snowboarding as part of a team.
Marko Grilc (pictured in 2010) was 38 years old from Slovenia. He wasn’t wearing any helmet as he fell on snow-covered rocks this Tuesday.
His team and staff at the Sölden ski resort tried to resuscitate him, but he died at the scene, CNN reports.
Burton Snowboards, and GoPro were both confirmed by Grilc on Wednesday.
Burton Snowboards sent this message: “With a heavyhearted heart we share the news that yesterday our dear friend Marko “Grilo” Grilc, a Burton team rider and close friend, died while snowboarding.
‘Our heart goes out to his fiancée Nina and their children, family, and friends, who all shared his love and passion for snowboarding.’
Grilc was a freestyle snowboarder who made an 11-year mark.
A post from GoPro said: ‘We are saddened to hear the news of Marko Grilc’s passing.
“He was a loved member of our GoPro family, inspiring us as an athlete and father as well as an incredible human.
“He was an icon and will be deeply missed.” We send our condolences to his loved ones.
Grilc, who is survived by his fiancée and two children, was born in Ljubljana, Slovenia.
Grilc stated that he began snowboarding at age eight, and that he got his first sponsor when he turned 14 years old.
The snowboarder is survived by his fiancée and two children
According to him, ‘At one point I had an epiphany about the coolness of my life.
‘When you are passionate about something, such as snowboarding. And realising it can become your career.
It never feels like work to me because it is so fulfilling and enjoyable. It’s always a good time.’
Over his 11-year career competing, he made a name for himself in freestyle snowboarding, with a debut at the 2002 FIS Junior World Championships in Finland according to the International Ski Federation (FIS) website.
Burton Snowboards, and GoPro were both confirmed by Grilc on Wednesday
Grilc earned nine podium finishes and won the Big Air events at the 2004 European Cup in Croatia as well as World Cup in London in 2010.
He was 71st at the last competition, the 2013 World Cup in Copper Mountain in Colorado.
Grilc began to focus more on filming snowboarding related projects. He often recorded trips via a YouTube channel.
His latest video is called ‘Disconnected’ and was posted earlier this year in March, documenting his visit to the Prokletije mountain range across Kosovo, Albania and Montenegro.