A frightening scene unfolded Friday during the women’s short track speed skating quarterfinals at the 2026 Winter Olympics, when Poland’s Kamila Sellier suffered a serious facial injury following a multi skater crash.
Sellier was skating near the front of the pack in the 1500 meter race with nine laps remaining when Italy’s Arianna Fontana moved past her. As the group fought for position a few laps later, Sellier lost her balance on a turn and went down.
During the fall, the blade of American Kristen Santos-Griswold made contact with Sellier above her left eye. Fontana and Santos Griswold also crashed, and officials immediately stopped the race as medical personnel rushed onto the ice.
Sellier remained down for several minutes as she was treated, with officials using a white sheet to provide privacy while trainers worked. She was eventually placed on a stretcher and taken off the ice at Milano Skating Arena to a round of applause from the crowd before being transported to a hospital for further evaluation.
According to the Associated Press, Sellier received stitches above her eye inside the arena. While no further updates were immediately available, the incident served as a sobering reminder of the risks involved in short track speed skating, where tight racing and razor thin margins leave little room for error.
