Crown Prince Frederik of Denmark, 51, is hospitalised and undergoes surgery after skiing accident in Switzerland

  • Crown Prince Frederik of Denmark has been hospitalised following a ski accident
  • The royal, 51, sustained a minor injury to his shoulder in Switzerland last week
  • Doctors at Copenhagen's Rigshospitalet performed an operation on Tuesday
  • The procedure was successful and will not interrupt Frederik's official schedule

Crown Prince Frederik of Denmark has been hospitalised following a skiing accident in Switzerland last week.

Frederik, 51, sustained a 'minor injury' to his left shoulder on the slopes at Verbier in southwestern Switzerland, an exclusive resort where he regularly holidays with wife Crown Princess Mary, 48, and their four children.

A royal winter playground, Verbier attracts a glittering guest list each season including Prince William, the Duchess of Cambridge and their three children George, Charlotte and Louis, and Sarah Ferguson and her daughters Princess Beatrice and Eugenie.

Prince Frederik was admitted to Rigshospitalet - a top-tier specialist hospital in Copenhagen - upon his return to Denmark, where doctors performed a routine operation on Tuesday.

The procedure was successful and will not interrupt Frederik's schedule of official engagements, an official statement from the Danish Royal House said.

Crown Prince Frederik (pictured in 2014) sustained a 'minor injury' to his left shoulder on the slopes at Verbier in southwestern Switzerland
The Prince regularly holidays there with his wife Australian-born Crown Princess Mary (pictured in 2014) and their four children

Crown Prince Frederik (left in 2014) sustained a 'minor injury' to his left shoulder on the slopes at Verbier in southwestern Switzerland, an exclusive resort where he regularly holidays with wife Crown Princess Mary (right in 2014) and their four children

'His Royal Highness The Crown Prince suffered a minor injury in (sic) the left shoulder last week in connection with skiing in Switzerland,' Danish Royal Communications Director Lene Balleby said on Tuesday.

'The Crown Prince has therefore today been examined and treated at the Rigshospitalet in Copenhagen.' 

Frederik is assumed to have been skiing at the luxury wooden chalet he bought with Australian-born Princess Mary more than a decade ago. 

The couple have been staying in the lodge to be close to their children who are spending three months in a Swiss boarding school to further their international education.

Prince Christian, 14, Princess Isabella, 12 and nine-year-old twins Prince Vincent and Princess Josephine temporarily transferred from Tranegård school in eastern Denmark to the Lemania-Verbier International School in the Swiss Alps in January.

Frederik and Mary have been staying in the lodge to be close to their four children (left to right: Prince Christian, Princess Isabella, Prince Josephine and Prince Vincent) who are spending three months in a Swiss boarding school to further their international education (the family attend a photo call during their annual Ski holiday in 2015)

Frederik and Mary have been staying in the lodge to be close to their four children (left to right: Prince Christian, Princess Isabella, Prince Josephine and Prince Vincent) who are spending three months in a Swiss boarding school to further their international education (the family attend a photo call during their annual Ski holiday in 2015)

Skiing accidents that shocked the world

MICHAEL SCHUMACHER 

Formula One kingpin Michael Schumacher was skiing with his 14-year-old son Mick at Meribel in the French Alps on December 29, 2013 when he lost his footing, fell and hit his head on a rock.

The racing star sustained a serious head injury despite wearing a ski helmet. He was airlifted to Grenoble Hospital where doctors performed two emergency surgeries and placed Schumacher in an induced coma because of his traumatic brain injuries. Despite reports of improvement, in November 2014 it was revealed that Schumacher was paralysed and in a wheelchair, and had lost the ability to speak along with much of his memory. 

In September 2019, French outlet Le Parisien reported Schumacher had been admitted to the Hopital Europeen Georges-Pompidou in Paris for pioneering cell treatment.

NATASHA RICHARDSON 

British actress Natasha Richardson slipped and hit her head during a beginner's ski lesson at the Mont Tremblant Resort in Quebec, Canada on March 16, 2009. She refused medical treatment and initially appeared fine, but three hours later she developed a headache at her hotel. Richardson was taken to hospital where she died two days after the accident on March 18 at the age of 49. 

The star had not been wearing a helmet during her lesson. Her death sparked debate around the world about whether wearing helmets should be mandatory on the slopes.

SONNY BONO

American singer-songwriter and one half of iconic duo Sonny and Cher Salvatore Phillip 'Sonny' Bono died after hitting a tree while skiing at Heavenly Mountain Resort near South Lake Tahoe in California.

ANGELA MERKEL 

The German chancellor fractured her pelvis while cross-country skiing in the Swiss Alps in January 2014. Merkel also suffered severe bruising and was forced to cancel several meetings and trips over the following three weeks.

PRINCESS CAROLINE OF MONACO

An accomplished skier, the daughter of Hollywood queen turned real life royalty Grace Kelly badly injured her knee when she collided with another skier in Arlberg, Austria in February 2001. 

Her husband, Prince Ernst August of Hanover, launched a $36,000 rescue mission to airlift her off the mountain.

ARNOLD SCHWARZENEGGER 

The then-Governor of California tripped over one of his ski poles and broke his right femur while skiing in Sun Valley, Idaho with his family on December 23, 2006.

HEATHER MILLS 

The model and ex-wife of Sir Paul McCartney crashed into a plastic pole which had frozen solid while skiing on Moelltaler Glacier in the Austrian Alps in January 2011. She shattered a shoulder blade but took the accident in her stride, telling media outlets at the time: 'That's skiing, you know.'

CROWN PRINCESS VICTORIA OF SWEDEN

The heir to the Swedish throne slipped and sprained her ankle while skiing in the Italian Alipine resort of Cervinia in December 2013. 

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The Prince has been photographed on the slopes several times since the move, including on Mary's 48th birthday on February 5.

Frederik and Mary have faced criticism in recent weeks after it was revealed their ski chalet was being rented on Airbnb for $14,000 AUD a week when they were not using it.

The Danish royal family live on a public allowance paid by the taxpayer of around $4 million a year. The money is permitted to be spent on foreign assets only with the approval of lawmakers.

The couple have since announced they will no longer advertise the home as a rental due to privacy concerns.

The royal couple have come under fire after revealing they have made money from a private Swiss ski lodge they have secretly owned for 10 years

The royal couple have come under fire after revealing they have made money from a private Swiss ski lodge they have secretly owned for 10 years

Member of Parliament Mai Villadsen told Danish media: 'I was very surprised when I found out that the family does not just have such a house, they have had such a house for 10 years, without any ordinary Danes knowing about it.

'We are the ones who pay the money so we must know about the house.'

The Royal House initially refused to comment on the matter, claiming it considers the purchase of the property a 'private matter' - to which Ms Villadsen retorted: 'I find it very difficult to see that a royal estate can be a private matter. To my knowledge, the appanage [considerable inheritance of heirs to the throne] has just increased.'

According to Danish magazine Billed-Bladet, the Crown Prince and Princess' property is a 'traditional Swiss wooden chalet with a nice, large terrace, located in a child-friendly neighbourhood and within walking distance of the children's school'.

The Crown Prince couple's secluded chalet features a fireplace, timber walls, ceilings and floorboards, as well as large windows looking onto the ski resort

The Crown Prince couple's secluded chalet features a fireplace, timber walls, ceilings and floorboards, as well as large windows looking onto the ski resort 

Pictures advertising the property surfaced after a palace spokeswoman confirmed it would no longer be available to rent

Pictures advertising the property surfaced after a palace spokeswoman confirmed it would no longer be available to rent

While their secret residence drew criticism from one party within the Danish political sphere, Conservative member of parliament Birgitte Bergman said she can't see 'anything wrong' with the couple owning the Swiss home.

'My party support the royal family 100 per cent and the dispositions they now make, as long as it is within the law,' she said.

'We cannot see anything wrong with that at all. This is also to be regarded as an old case. This happened 10 years ago and has no relevance today.'

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