Estelle Balet, a 21-year-old snowboarding champion, was killed by an avalanche in the Swiss Alps Thuesday in the morning. The slab of snow broke away and swept the joung athlete down a narrow, rocky slope. The accident happened above the Swiss village of Orsieres, on Le Portalet, while Estelle was filming a movie.

She was following another snowboarder, who was not injured, when she was struck by the avalanche. Emergency workers were summoned shortly after 8 a.m., and Air Glaciers, an air ambulance service, arrived on the scene and extracted her from the snow. Efforts to revive her were unsuccessful.

Estelle was a Swiss Freeride snowboarder and world champion in 2015 and 2016 at the Freeride World Tour.

“Estelle Balet was a naturally gifted shining star and demonstrated remarkable talent as she quickly became a household name on the Freeride World Tour, bringing home her second title as World Champion just a few weeks ago in Verbier,” the Freeride World Tour said in a statement.

Sources text and pic: Freeride World Tour / The Guardian.com
Watch the video of the winning run: Estelle Balet – Xtreme Verbier – Swatch Freeride World Tour 2016.