Waterskier critically injured in festival accident

Emergency services were called to the Quayside in King's Lynn and racing was stopped for the day

A man in his 40s has suffered life-threatening injuries in a waterskiing accident at a watersports festival.

He was taking part in an organised race at the Hanseatic Festival of Watersports in King's Lynn, Norfolk, on Sunday afternoon.

He was flown by air ambulance to Addenbrooke's Hospital in Cambridge, where he remains in a critical condition.

Organisers said their thoughts were with the injured skier and they praised the actions of the emergency services.

This year was the 10th anniversary of the Hanseatic Festival of Watersports

Land and air ambulances and police were called to the Quayside, alongside the River Great Ouse, at 16:45 BST.

Norfolk Police described the man's injuries as "life-threatening". It added there would be no criminal investigation into what happened.

This year marked the 10th anniversary of the two-day event, which pulls in competitors from across Europe and tens of thousands of spectators.

It is organised by the festival committee and the Borough Council of King's Lynn and West Norfolk.

In a joint statement, they said: "Our thoughts at this time are with the family and teammates of the injured skier. We are also thinking of the other competitors and teams who were obviously shocked by this incident.

"Whilst any competitive motorsport is clearly not without risk, thankfully incidents of this nature are rare."

The remaining races planned for the day were abandoned following the incident.