Distraught Parisien to Skip Season

Skier Julie Parisien, still distraught over the death of her brother more than a year ago, announced Tuesday that she will take the rest of the season off.

The announcement was no surprise. At the Olympics, Parisien strongly suggested that she would take a sabbatical from ski racing because of lingering emotional duress over the death of older brother, Jean-Paul, killed in an automobile accident in December, 1992.

“Thinking about him every day on the hill has been incredibly taxing,” Parisien said. “I didn’t think it would come to this end.”

Parisien, 22, was once the world’s top-ranked slalom skier. But since she won silver in slalom at the 1993 World Championships, a medal she dedicated to her brother, her performance has dropped off dramatically.

“The only person I can really blame for this is the drunk driver who killed my brother,” Parisien said of her decision. “That’s the only reason for this.”

Parisien said she suffered an emotional breakdown here Monday, which prompted her to make her decision public.