Laura Dahlmeier has passed away at the age of just 31. The biathlon queen suffered a fatal accident during an expedition in the Pakistani Karakoram Mountains.

On July 28, the two-time Olympic champion and seven-time biathlon world champion was alpine skiing with her climbing partner when she was hit by a rockfall at an altitude of approximately 5,700 meters. The accident occurred around noon local time. Although an emergency call was made immediately, the terrain was extremely remote. A rescue helicopter was not able to reach the scene until the morning of July 29. The search was called off that evening due to darkness.

Dahlmeier has not yet been recovered, but she has already been declared dead. Her management explained the reasons in a press release.

It states that her rope partner, Marina Krauss, made the emergency call and attempted to rescue her"for many hours." However, due to"the difficulty of the terrain and the ongoing rockfall," this was impossible."After the rope partner also failed to detect any signs of life, she decided to retreat from the danger zone and continue her descent during the night," it continues.

The management also writes :"On the morning of July 29, Laura Dahlmeier was spotted during a military helicopter flyover, but no signs of life were detectable." An air rescue was not technically possible, and a terrestrial rescue was considered too dangerous and was discontinued.

This leads to the assessment:"Based on the findings from the helicopter overflight and the rope partner's description of the severity of the injuries, it can be assumed that Laura Dahlmeier died immediately."

Dahlmeier had also issued a written order stating that no one should risk their life to rescue them if such a situation should arise.