Champion U.S. Freestyle Skier , Kyle Smaine , Dies in Avalanche.<br />'The Independent' reports that United States <br />champion freestyle skier Kyle Smaine <br />has died in an avalanche in Japan.<br />'The Independent' reports that United States <br />champion freestyle skier Kyle Smaine <br />has died in an avalanche in Japan.<br />Previously, Smaine had written on Instagram that <br />he had traveled to Japan to take advantage <br />of "unbelievable snow quality.".<br />This is what brings me <br />back to Japan each winter, Kyle Smaine, via Instagram.<br />Smaine had added that Japan had , “really fun terrain that seems to get <br />better [the] more exploring you do”.<br />In 2015, Smaine won gold in the halfpipe <br />at the FIS Freestyle Ski and <br />Snowboarding World Championships.<br />In 2015, Smaine won gold in the halfpipe <br />at the FIS Freestyle Ski and <br />Snowboarding World Championships.<br />On January 29, Smaine was in <br />Nagano Prefecture on Honshu Island <br />when the avalanche occurred.<br />According to Nagano police, as many as five people from the U.S. and Austria were caught in the avalanche, which occurred on the eastern side of Mount Hakuba Norikura.<br />Authorities said that of the five men skiing on the mountain, <br />three were able to climb down on their own, while <br />Smaine and another unnamed skier were not. .<br />Authorities said that of the five men skiing on the mountain, <br />three were able to climb down on their own, while <br />Smaine and another unnamed skier were not. .<br />Reuters reported that both men <br />were found without vital signs.<br />Weather officials had issued an avalanche <br />warning following days of heavy snowfall <br />and record-breaking low temperatures
