In a devastating incident at a ski resort in southern Kosovo, legendary American skier Katherine 'Kasha' Rigby has lost her life after being caught in an avalanche, according to reports. The news of the 54-year-old skier's death was initially announced by Euronew.albania on Tuesday. A spokesperson for the regional police confirmed that the victim of the avalanche was a 54-year-old foreign citizen.

Rigby, a pioneering athlete, was in Brezovica with her fiancé Magnus Wolfe Murray when tragedy struck. They were skiing when a small avalanche swept Rigby into the trees, leading to her unfortunate demise on impact. Wolfe Murray, who reached her within 20 seconds, made every effort to resuscitate her but, sadly, his attempts were unsuccessful.

Local media reported that the Mountain Search and Rescue Service of Kosovo located Rigby's body after several challenging attempts. Due to the adverse weather conditions, including fog and low visibility, finding the accident site was immensely difficult. The representative from the search and rescue service revealed that the incident occurred in an area known as 'The place of Eagles.'

Although the European report did not explicitly mention Rigby as the victim, friends and loved ones started posting tributes on her Instagram account following the tragic incident. Ski Magazine also received information about Rigby's untimely passing from sources close to the skier.

Rigby was born in Vermont and later moved to Colorado and Utah. She was widely celebrated for her accomplishments, including being the first skier to achieve a telemark ski descent of Cho You, a Himalayan mountain and the sixth highest peak in the world. Telemark skiing, which combines elements of Alpine and Nordic skiing, required her to maintain balance by leveraging the rear foot while pushing on the front foot. Unlike other skiing techniques, telemark skiing involves only toe binds without the heel being hooked onto the ski.

Throughout her illustrious career, Rigby successfully completed challenging descents from peaks in countries such as Russia, Ecuador, and Lebanon, further establishing her as an exceptional athlete in the skiing world.

In Rigby's last Instagram post, which she shared just four days ago, she mentioned being in Kosovo for off-trail skiing with her fiancé. The tragic avalanche, however, cut short her life and left the skiing community in shock.

The loss of Katherine 'Kasha' Rigby is a heartbreaking one for the skiing world. Her groundbreaking achievements and fearless spirit will be forever remembered and cherished. Our thoughts and condolences go out to her loved ones during this immensely difficult time.