The accident on Saturday afternoon occurred in Rosswald above Brig. The mountain biker was on his way from Stafel towards Rosswald when, for unknown reasons, he fell and tumbled 150 meters down a slope Hikers found the 54-year-old from Lucerne lying on a forest road and tried in vain to resuscitate him. Even the Air Zermatt paramedic who was called could only determine that he had died. According to the Valais cantonal police, the responsible public prosecutor has ordered an investigation.

Only one day later, a 60-year-old Austrian fell on a mountain bike tour from Ischgl to Scuol in the Lower Engadine. He is said to have slid ten meters over steep grassland after a fall and then free-fell 40 meters over a rock face. He sustained fatal injuries in the process. The accident site was only 200 meters from the Hotel Val Sinestra. Rega was only able to recover the casualty dead.In Switzerland, fatal accidents involving mountain bikers are very rare; according to statistics from the Swiss Council for Accident Prevention, the sport ranks even lower than fishing in terms of danger statistics. Nevertheless, fatalities involving mountain bikers are reported every year. The last sensational incident was the fatal accident of a Dutchman who wanted to ride the rocky trail in Val d'Uina and fell into the 200-metre-deep gorge.

More news on this:
BfU statistics: Mountain biking is safer than fishing and walking
Accident in the Val d'Uina: The Val d'Uina claims its first mountain bike fatality