Sarah Teelow, water ski champion, dies in accident

Nov. 26 (UPI) -- World champion water skier Sarah Teelow died Sunday after crashing during a high-speed race on an Australian river.

The 20-year-old skier suffered serious spinal and head injuries after she hit the wake of another boat prompting her to come off her skis about five kilometers into a 112 kilometer race. She is believed to have been traveling at 80 mph.

After falling into the water, Teelow's helmet filled with water keeping her submerged for minutes. The skier went into cardiac arrest and was resuscitated by paramedics after being moved to a nearby boat ramp.

Her vertebrae apparently broke with the fall. She was later taken to the Royal North Shore Hospital in Sydney where she was breathing though a life-support machine. Her family, her boyfriend and her friends were by her side when the machine was shut off Monday.

Police are currently reviewing a video that shows a speed boat traveling in the opposite direction of Teelow as it may have contributed to her tragic fall.

Teelow was crowned the champion of the Formula 2 category at the World Water Ski Racing Championships in Spain two months ago. She is the seventh water skier to die in an accident in Australia in the past five years.

[Daily Mail]