American figure skater suffers neck injury after frightening fall during routine at Golden Spin of Zagreb

Ashley Cain fell head first onto the ice. Photo / Twitter

An American figure skater suffered a scary fall during a skating competition in Croatia, after being dropped during an overhead lift.

Ashley Cain and Timothy LeDuc were in the final third of their program on Friday at the Golden Spin of Zagreb when LeDuc appeared to lose his grip sending them both tumbling to the ice.

Cain, who landed head first, remained on the ice for a few moments before LeDuc helped her back up and the American pair completed their routine.

After the performance, the 23-year old figure skater was seen visibly dazed and wearing a neck brace, with the extent of her injuries yet to be revealed.

The horrific incident has since sparked an uproar among fans who believed the referee should have intervened so that Cain could receive proper treatment on the ice.

According to the International Skating Union's rulebook, the referee has the authority to stop a program in a medical emergency but the wording leaves a lot at the official's discretion.

"If, in the opinion of the Referee, medical attention is required, he must stop the performance by an acoustic signal and follow the Medical Protocol (Communication 2049 or any update thereof) The Referee, after consulting with the respective Team Physician, or, if not present, the medical doctor provided by the Organiser, he will decide if the Competitor is allowed back to compete. If the Referee does not allow the skater to resume within 3 minutes since he stopped skating his program the competitor will be considered withdrawn," the rulebook reads.

Many fans have since taken to Twitter to express their outrage over the incident, some slamming the referee's lack of intervention as "ridiculous".

"Hey @ISU_Figure care to explain why Ashley Cain was allowed to continue after that fall? A skater should never be allowed to put their health at risk like that and I truly hope there are repercussions for that inaction," one user wrote.

"This is ridiculous. This skate should have been stopped immediately after that fall. Cain's head CLEARLY smacked down onto the ice and she was totally dazed for the rest of the program. These refs didn't do their job correctly. I really hope she's okay," another posted.

Please, figure skating referees, you have a job to do. Putting skaters in danger is not one of those jobs. #GoldenSpin

— Jackie Wong aka Walter Cronk-Ice (@rockerskating) December 7, 2018

U.S Figure Skating have since tweeted an update from Cain who thanked her supporters and said she had been checked out of hospital to recover at home.

"Hey everyone, thank you so much for all the wishes and for checking in," Cain said. "It really means a lot to us. I got checked out at the hospital and I am going to continue my recovery back home. Thank you for all of your love and for supporting us! The medical team and staff were wonderful."

(1/2) Message from @icegirlash:

“Hey everyone, thank you so much for all of the well wishes and for checking in. It really means a lot to us. I got checked out at the hospital and I am going to continue my recovery back home.”

— U.S. Figure Skating (@USFigureSkating) December 8, 2018

(2/2) “Thank you for all of your love and for supporting us! The medical team and staff were wonderful❤️”

— U.S. Figure Skating (@USFigureSkating) December 8, 2018