Jean Daniel Pession, a 28-year-old World Cup skier, and his girlfriend, Elisa Arlian, tragically died in a skiing accident. The couple fell over 2,300 feet off a mountain in Italy.

The Italian Winter Sports Federation confirmed the heartbreaking news, stating, “A terrible tragedy happens in the world of winter sports, especially speed skiing.” Pession, a native of the Aosta Valley, had his best career year in 2021, finishing fifteenth in the final World Cup rankings and twenty-second at the 2022 World Championships in Vars. The Federation’s President, Flavio Roda, and the entire organization expressed their condolences to the Pession family.

Pession and Arlian, 27, were on a romantic hike on Mount Zerbion in the Alps when the accident occurred. Their families raised the alarm when they didn’t return home, prompting a rescue mission involving three helicopters with mountain rescue, police, and firefighters.

The couple was found deceased, still holding hands, after their fall.