Salt Lake City, UT – Canadian Freestyle Halfpipe Team member Sarah Burke remains in critical condition in a coma in a Salt Lake City hospital following a training accident on Tuesday at Park City Mountain Resort in Utah.

Burke, 29, tore her vertebral artery in the crash, resulting in bleeding on her brain, doctors indicate.

“On Wednesday, Burke underwent a successful operation to repair a tear to her vertebral artery, which resulted in an intracranial hemorrhage at the time of her fall,” her publicist, Nicole Wool, said in a statement released today. “William T. Couldwell, M.D. Ph.D., professor and chair of Neurosurgery at University of Utah performed the operation to repair the artery.

“With injuries of this type, we need to observe the course of her brain function before making definitive pronouncements about Sarah’s prognosis for recovery,” said Couldwell. “Our Neuro Critical Care team will be monitoring her condition and response continuously over the coming hours and days.”

Canadian Freestyle Ski Association CEO Peter Judge says that Burke, of Squamish, British Columbia, landed flat on her feet at the bottom of Park City Mountain’s Eagle Superpipe, “whip-lashing” onto the ground and striking her head. Witnesses indicated that at first the fall did not appear substantial, but Burke was unconscious as she was attended to by members of Park City’s ski patrol before being airlifted to University Hospital in Salt Lake City.

Burke’s family including her husband, professional freeskier Rory Bushfield, remain at her side. They also on Thursday expressed their gratitude for the overwhelming outpouring of support Burke has received from around the globe. Her Facebook page has been flooded with well-wishes from a multitude of fans.