Poland’s Kamila Sellier suffered a cut after she fell in a turn, alongside American Kristen Santos-Griswold and Italy’s Ariana Fontana.
WASHINGTON — The Polish short-track speedskater who was taken off the ice by a stretcher Friday after a terrifying fall during competition is now recovering from surgery.
Kamila Sellier was competing in the quarterfinal for the women’s 1,500 meters at the 2026 Winter Olympics when she fell during a turn, alongside American Kristen Santos-Griswold and 15-time Olympic medalist Ariana Fontana of Italy.
The race was quickly halted for several minutes and emergency responders rushed onto the ice to attend to Sellier, who was bleeding after she suffered a significant cut near her left eye. A large white sheet was held up to block her from the crowd that was packed into the arena to see the final night of short-track speedskating at the 2026 Winter Games.
There was a trail of blood on the ice that workers had to clean during the break.
A replay showed Santos-Griswold’s skate blade inadvertently cut Sellier’s face as the trio fell. Overhead photos showed Sellier with blood covering the left side of her face as she was stretchered out.
The TV broadcast noted Sellier did appear to give a thumbs up as she was taken away.
Polish officials said Sellier’s eye was OK. She received stitches at the arena before going to the hospital for more tests.
During the delay, an official came over to tell Santos-Griswold that she had been penalized and would not be allowed to compete when the race resumed.
The American skater was visibly shocked at the decision, as were the commentators on the U.S. feed because a replay hadn’t been shown.
“I don’t know what happened,” one commentator remarked. “We’re often puzzled in this sport by decisions. We just saw one we can’t explain.”
A spokesperson for the the Polish Olympic team told the BBC that Sellier had surgery after she received stitches.
“Kamila had surgery last night. She is in good condition. We’re waiting for further tests today [Saturday] to check her eye for any signs of damage,” the spokesperson told BBC Sport.
Why was Kristen Santos-Griswold disqualified?
After the quarterfinal heat resumed and finished, details about the penalties were finally announced.
The official said that there was an “end of straight – illegal late pass” by Santos-Griswold, along with Sellier, against the Italian skater. Both Santos-Griswold and Sellier received a penalty.
