Two British skiers tragically killed in an avalanche in the French ski resort of Val d’Isère have been pictured for the first time.
Stuart Leslie and Shaun Overy were part of a group of people skiing off-piste under an instructor’s supervision in the Manchet valley when the avalanche hit on Friday morning.
They were swept down the valley into a stream below where rescuers later recovered their bodies.
A French national skiing solo above the group was also killed, while a third Briton escaped with minor injuries after reportedly digging himself out of the snow.
The avalanche occurred less than 24 hours after the area was placed on a rare red avalanche alert, a level of warning issued only twice before in the 25 years since its introduction.
Cedric Bonnevie, who is in charge of the resort’s pistes, said an inquiry into the incident was underway, with an investigation for manslaughter opened by the Albertville public prosecutor’s office.
The two British victims had been among a group of five, including a professional guide, low down the mountain face.
“All were equipped” with safety gear, according to the resort, but they were not fortunate enough to see the looming disaster.
Mr Leslie had a passion for skiing
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Mr Leslie, 46, a sales and marketing director for Barratt Redrow construction company, is believed to have been an experienced skier.
He regularly posted on social media about his passion for off-piste skiing, which involves venturing away from the marked and groomed routes of ski resorts.
He also appeared to be a regular visitor to Val d’Isère, with a photograph he posted on Facebook in December 2024 of him watching a skiing competition at the resort.
It is understood that Mr Leslie’s wife, Anastasia, died in 2017.
Mr Overy posted pictures of him skiing with his wife, Francesca, and their daughter
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In a tribute on social media, his friend Craig Hunter said: “I take comfort in believing he is with Anastasia now – his one true love. In that belief, I find the only peace I can in such a profound loss.”
It is also believed that Mr Leslie and Mr Overy were friends.
Mr Overy, 51, who ran a plumbing business in Wimbledon, also appears to have been a regular skier.
A photograph he posted on Facebook in 2016 showed him with a group of friends in Tignes, a ski resort a few miles from Val d’Isère, with other pictures showing him skiing with his wife, Francesca.
Several ski resorts in the region were forced to shut in light of the dangerous conditions this past week, among them Plagne, Les Arcs, Peisey-Vallandry and La Grave.
Although the red alert was lifted by Friday, the risk level remained at four out of five, officially “high”, with avalanches “easily triggered by skiers or hikers” and capable of mobilising “very large volumes of snow”.
Rescue teams retrieved the first two bodies on Friday within 15 minutes, because they were equipped with avalanche transceivers.
However, finding the third body – one of the Britons – was more difficult because their transceiver was underwater and no longer working.
Rescuers used dogs and probes and were finally able to retrieve the body after a couple of hours.
Offering its “sincere condolences to the families and loved ones of the victims”, the Val-d’Isère tourist office “recommends that skiers stay in the safe and marked areas of the ski area”.
In a message published on X, authorities also strongly advised against “off-piste activities, ski touring and snowshoeing” and invited mountain enthusiasts to “strictly comply with the instructions given by professionals and the safety services of the slopes”.
The death toll across Europe’s ski season has already climbed above 60 and authorities fear that number could continue to rise.
