Skier injured in freak accident

An instructor’s ski broke free of its binding and became a missile, striking and critically injuring a Dutch tourist in Austria’s Alps, authorities said today.

The victim, a 53-year-old man whose name and hometown were not released, was rushed to a hospital in the alpine province of Tyrol after the freak accident.

The ski struck him in the head after it came loose during a demonstration at a resort in Ellmau, police said in a statement.

The victim had been filming the instruction session when the ski flew through the air and hit him, authorities said. He suffered serious injuries.