US snowboarder Pearce suffers head injury in halfpipe accident

Pearce suffers head injury in halfpipe accident

PARK CITY, Utah — American snowboarder Kevin Pearce sustained a head injury in training on the halfpipe.

Pearce, a top-ranked halfpipe rider with a good chance of making the U.S. Olympic team, was knocked unconscious when he hit his head on the halfpipe during a training run Thursday. He was taken to University of Utah hospital.

Pearce was preparing for next week’s Olympic qualifying events in Mammoth Mountain, Calif. He was considered, along with Shaun White, to be one of America’s top athletes in a sport dominated by the United States.