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The Honolulu Advertiser
Updated at 5:07 a.m., Sunday, January 25, 2009

Skiing: Albrecht still in coma after training crash

Associated Press

INNSBRUCK, Austria — Swiss skier Daniel Albrecht remained in a stable condition but was still in an induced coma Sunday, three days after suffering brain and lung injuries following a World Cup downhill training crash.

Albrecht had a "quiet and very stable" third night at the Innsbruck University hospital but doctors postponed the wake-up procedure after his multiple injuries, the clinic's spokesman Johannes Schwamberger said Sunday.

"Examinations showed that several small bleedings in his lungs have not fully stopped yet. We have to wait for further developments," Schwamberger said. "For the doctors, there is still no reason to be too worried."

Albrecht's brain was not swollen and his blood circulation and lung functions were stable.

Albrecht lost control after flying through the air for about 40 meters, landed on his back and came to a stop near the finish line at Thursday's World Cup downhill training on the famously difficult Streif course in Kitzbuehel.

He lost consciousness and received medical attention for about 20 minutes before being taken to hospital.

The 25-year-old Albrecht is the reigning super-combined world champion and has four career World Cup victories — three in giant slalom and one in super-combi. He has two giant slalom wins this season, at Soelden, Austria, and Alta Badia, Italy, and is 10th in the overall World Cup standings.