No fracture, but skater Christie’s confidence must be shattered

FIRST there were tears, then fears and finally news that speed skater Elise Christie had not broken her leg. In the context of her Winter Olympics curse, that last point was perhaps the most surprising.

Quite simply, nothing else has gone her way at these Games, which were meant to be a redemption for three disqualifications at Sochi 2014, but instead have become a recurrence of the nightmare. Yesterday’s instalment was particularly unpleasant, with Christie crashing out of the 1,500 metres semi-final and injuring her right ankle by colliding with a barrier.

Just as she had done following her crash in the 500m final on Tuesday, she left the ice in floods of tears, though this time on a stretcher. The British Olympic Association allayed the worst fears by saying an X-ray on her right ankle showed no fractures, but what of her state of mind?

Even if she is somehow fit to race in her favoured 1,000m discipline, starting on Tuesday, her confidence seems to be in pieces.

Her boyfriend, the Hungarian skater Shaolin Liu, who by freak coincidence was also disqualified for a crash in the 1,000m moments after Christie’s incident, said he was ‘hopeful’ she would compete next week, having spoken to her from hospital.

‘I had a phone call and she told me she was fine,’ he said. ‘She’s a tough woman and I think she is going to be fine (for the 1,000m).’

The latest crash came in the desperation of her final lap. She needed to overtake Li Jinyu to get into the top two and qualify for the final, but after clipping the Chinese on the outside she flew heavily into the barriers. Officials blamed Christie for the crash, which also took out Li, and disqualified her.

A decision will be made in the next 48 hours over where she can return in the 1,000m. Christie’s problems came after Charlotte Gilmartin crashed in her semi and Kathryn Thomson went out in the heats.