Over 2,700 sport enthusiasts died in Switzerland in last 15 years

The Swiss Council for Accident Prevention (BFU) reported Tuesday that 2,718 sport enthusiasts lost their lives between 2000 and 2014 in Switzerland while partaking in activities such as mountaineering, trekking and a range of snow and aquatic sports.

Representing an average death rate of 181 fatalities per year, of which 59 are foreign, figures show that mountain activities including trekking and mountaineering are the most dangerous as on average 83 people lose their lives every year while conducting these activities.

Though considerably lower, the death toll for winter sports comes in at second place, with an average of 39 people losing their lives each year on the confederation's slopes.

BFU reported that most of these deaths occurred when individuals were cross-country trekking or carrying out activities such as skiing and snowboarding on off-track itineraries.

Statistics furthermore reveal that 26 people drown on average each year in the confederation, with many doing so with no apparent reason or after having unexpectedly fallen into the water.

The Council indicated that these figures fail to determine the risk of dying while participating in a given sport as the exact number of participants is more often than not insufficiently precise.

Statistics indicate that some 400,000 sportsmen and sportswomen are injured annually in Switzerland. Endit