Tommaso Giacomel undergoes heart surgery after withdrawing from Olympic lead

Italian biathlete Tommaso Giacomel has successfully undergone heart surgery after breathing difficulties forced him to withdraw while leading an Olympic race.

The 25-year-old pulled out of the 15km mass start event on Friday after experiencing severe physical distress.

Medical examinations subsequently revealed an atrial conduction abnormality requiring intervention.

The Italian Winter Sports Federation confirmed that a minor operation to correct the issue has been performed and was a "complete success".

‘Body stopped working’

Giacomel, who won a silver medal at the Milano Cortina Games on 8 February, had been on course for another podium finish before the incident.

The skier described the alarming moment he was forced to stop on social media.

"Right after the second prone my body somehow stopped working properly and I was really struggling to breathe and to move, therefore I had to stop."

An ablation procedure was recommended following the health scare.

He is expected to be discharged from hospital on Thursday.

Road to recovery

The Milano Cortina silver medallist will undergo further medical checks in two weeks.

Following these assessments, he is expected to be cleared to return to regular training.

The International Biathlon Union has publicly wished the athlete a "smooth recovery".

This was Giacomel’s second appearance at a Winter Games.

He previously competed at Beijing 2022, where his best result was a seventh-place finish in the men’s relay.

While he secured success in the mixed relay earlier this month, his individual campaign was brought to a premature end.