Schwarzenegger breaks leg skiing

Arnold Schwarzenegger has been a keen skier for years

Former film star Arnold Schwarzenegger has broken his leg while skiing with his family in Sun Valley, Idaho.

The California governor was taken to a local hospital for X-rays, which revealed he had fractured his femur.

An Austrian, Mr Schwarzenegger is an experienced skier and frequent visitor to Sun Valley, where a piste has been named Arnold's Run after him.

The Sun Valley resort, America's first Alpine ski resort, is known as a winter playground for the rich and famous.

Mr Schwarzenegger was discharged from hospital and is now recuperating at his Sun Valley home, Adam Mendelsohn, the governor's deputy chief of staff for communications, said in a statement.

"When the governor returns to Los Angeles from his scheduled Christmas trip, he will have surgery to repair his femur," Mr Mendelsohn said.

"No-one else was involved in the skiing accident," his statement added.

Mr Schwarzenegger is in Sun Valley with his wife Maria Shriver and their four children.

"The governor's doing great, and he's looking forward to spending the Christmas holiday with his family," Julie Soderlund, a spokeswoman for Mr Schwarzenegger told the Reuters news agency.