Albuquerque, N.M. ? A veteran balloonist who was competing in the Gordon Bennett international gas-balloon race was treated at a hospital for broken bones Sunday after crashing in Kansas.

Richard Abruzzo’s balloon encountered thermal conditions that caused it to drop rapidly and strike a power line near Kendall, Kan., race organizers said. Abruzzo then fell from the basket. Kendall is in eastern Hamilton County.

“He has some broken bones. We won’t know for sure exactly what until he is fully evaluated, but they believe the injuries are in his wrist,” Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta spokeswoman Kathie Leyendecker said.

The Albuquerque balloonist, who won the race last year in Europe, was taken by ambulance to a hospital in Garden City, Kan.

After the accident, organizers said the balloon climbed to 14,000 feet with co-pilot Carol Rymer Davis still aboard until it landed safely. Rymer Davis wasn’t hurt.

The race began Saturday in Albuquerque with 26 entrants as part of the city’s annual fiesta.