GIRDWOOD, Alaska —  A Colorado man was killed in a skiing accident at the U.S. World Free Skiing Championships at the Alyeska Resort.

The skier was identified by Alaska State Troopers as 26-year-old John Nicoletta of Aspen.

Nicoletta went off a steep embankment Friday and fell about 100 feet onto rocks, apparently dying instantly, Alaska State Troopers told the Anchorage Daily News.

Troopers Sgt. Bryan Barlow said witnesses reported Nicoletta fell off the outcrop. He says Nicoletta was "head over heels, essentially tomahawking all the way down the hill."

Barlow says resuscitation efforts went on for about 45 minutes before he was declared dead.

His family has been notified.

The competition at the resort about 30 miles south of Anchorage is scheduled to continue Saturday.