World champ freeskier Smaine dies in avalanche in Japan

By Associated Press

Jan 31, 2023 10:45 am

TOKYO: World champion halfpipe skier Kyle Smaine died after getting buried in an avalanche in the mountains of central Japan over the weekend.

The U.S. Freeski team posted on social media about the 31-year-old American's death. Smaine, who lived in Lake Tahoe, California, recently posted that he was taking the trip to ski in the backcountry of the Nagano prefecture to enjoy the 'unbelievable snow quality.'

Kyle Smaine competes to win the men's freestyle ski half pipe event at the Freestyle Ski and Snowboard World Championships in Kreischberg, Austria, Jan. 22, 2015. Smaine died after getting buried in an avalanche in the mountains of central Japan over the weekend. AP FILE PHOTO

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