Injured Schild misses ski season

Reigning World Cup slalom champion Marlies Schild will miss the upcoming season after breaking her leg in two places in training on Thursday.

The Austrian crashed at the Rettenbach-Ferner glacier in the Tyrol province and was taken to hospital in Innsbruck.

She was preparing for the first World Cup giant slalom race of the season, at Soelden on 25 October.

It is unclear how long the 27-year-old slalom specialist, who has won 20 World Cup races, will be out of action.

"I hope the fractures are not too serious, but she can forget about this season," Austrian women's team coach Herbert Mandl said.

Schild won a silver medal in the women's combined and a bronze medal in the slalom at the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin.