Skater who fell five metres: two technicians convicted in Lausanne

The Lausanne police court has convicted two people over the accident suffered by a Russian skater during the 2020 Winter Youth Olympics. In Switzerland, the police court has jurisdiction over less serious offences, punishable by a monetary penalty or a short custodial sentence.

The two convicted men are technicians from an event organisation company based in German-speaking Switzerland. The court imposed on each of them a monetary penalty of 180 daily rates of 50 francs, a total of 9,000 francs, with a two-year suspended sentence: the penalty will therefore not be enforced if the convicted men do not commit any further offence within that period. According to the court's presiding judge, the two men were found guilty of serious bodily harm through negligence, an offence that in Switzerland punishes anyone who negligently causes another person a particularly serious physical injury.

The proceedings also concerned three other people: the athlete's husband and two other technicians involved in organising the performance. The court acquitted them.

The fall on the ice at Malley

The skater, Sevastianova, fell from a height of five metres while performing on the ice of the Malley rink in Lausanne. During the performance she was suspended from a rope connected to a winch.

In the fall, the athlete suffered extremely serious injuries to her skull, face and liver. The consequences were so severe that she was unable to return to sport.

The investigation opened after the accident established that the fall was caused by an incorrect installation of the winch from which the skater was suspended during the performance. It was on this technical responsibility that the court based the conviction of the two defendants, distinguishing it from the position of the other people involved in the organisation, who were not found to bear any criminal responsibility.

The ruling brings to a close the criminal proceedings opened following the accident, which took place several years ago during the Youth Olympic Games hosted by Switzerland.