Tragedy struck the skiing community as professional skier Jean Daniel Pession and his girlfriend, Elisa Arlian, lost their lives in a devastating mountain accident in northern Italy. The Italian Winter Sports Federation confirmed the heartbreaking news in a statement released on Saturday, June 1.
According to reports from RAI, Italy’s national public broadcasting company, the couple fell nearly 2,300 feet off Mount Zerbion in the Aosta Valley region. Both skilled ski instructors, Pession, 28, and Arlian, 27, met a tragic fate as they “fell into the void” before being engulfed by an avalanche of snow.
RAI shared a somber account, revealing that the couple was on the verge of reaching the summit when the unforgiving mountain betrayed them. Their bodies were discovered still intertwined, as if in a final embrace, after a frantic search by rescuers. A signal from one of their cell phones aided in locating their lifeless forms hours after they were reported missing.
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“They had set out early in the morning to reach a peak both knew well,” according to an English translation of an RAI news story. “When their families didn’t see them return, they called the emergency center, which immediately activated the helicopters. … When the technicians lowered themselves with the winch, they found them still tied together.”
The pair had embarked on their journey early in the morning to conquer a peak they both knew well. When their families realized they hadn’t returned as expected, they raised the alarm, prompting an immediate search and rescue operation. Tragically, it ended in the heartbreaking discovery of their bodies.
The news of their untimely demise has prompted an outpouring of grief and condolences from the local community and beyond. Aosta Valley President Renzo Testolin and Italian Winter Sports Federation President Flavio Roda were among those who expressed their sympathies to the families of Pession and Arlian.
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Meanwhile, the Italian Winter Sports Federation concluded its statement with, “Roda and the entire Federation express their condolences to [their families] for this tragic misfortune.”
Alberto Bertin, the Regional Council President of Aosta Valley, lamented the loss of “two young lives cut short by a mountain accident,” emphasizing the couple’s deep passion for the mountains. He extended heartfelt condolences to their families, friends, and the entire sports community, offering comfort and compassion during this difficult time.
The Italian Winter Sports Federation echoed similar sentiments, conveying their profound condolences to the grieving families. As the skiing world mourns the loss of Pession and Arlian, their memory lives on, cherished by those whose lives they touched with their love for the sport and adventurous spirit.
