Norwegian still in a wheelchair
Ski star Kilde fears for his career after a horror fall
February 1, 2024, 1:55 p.m
The 2020 overall World Cup winner gives another update on his injury break. Almost three weeks after his bad fall, Aleksander Aamodt Kilde fluctuates between confidence and reserve. The Norwegian cannot yet say whether he will ever be able to compete for victories again.
The Norwegian ski star Aleksander Aamodt Kilde does not dare to predict a comeback almost three weeks after his bad fall on the Lauberhorn descent in Wengen. The 31-year-old explained at a virtual press conference that he doesn’t know whether he will ever be able to reach his top level again. “The situation surrounding my injury is unclear. I’m confident that it will be fine again, but the question is how long it will take,” said Kilde.
“It’s too early to say whether I’ll be able to stand on skis like before and win races again,” said the top downhill skier of the past few years and overall World Cup winner in 2020. “But of course I want to get back to that , what I love.” He’s now focusing on “getting back on his feet and walking properly. After that, I’ll take it day by day,” explained Kilde. It is uncertain whether the affected nerves need six months, a whole year or possibly even two.
Kilde fell during the race in Switzerland in mid-January and crashed into the safety fence at high speed. He had seriously injured his shoulder and lower leg. The Norwegian recently published drastic pictures of his calf injury on social media and described details of the rehab he is completing in Innsbruck.
Shiffrin on the way to a comeback
He said he was able to put some weight on his leg again, and then talked about the pain caused by a nerve that was severed in the fall. He still needs a wheelchair, but he cannot use it due to his shoulder injury, reported “Der Standard”. He is dependent on the support of his family. “It was a hard time, I had a lot of pain and two operations in two different places. It takes time. I have that too,” said Kilde.
In addition to the Norwegian, numerous other ski stars are currently out of action with injuries. Ski icon Mikaela Shiffrin is still relatively lucky. The American is working on her comeback after her fall last Friday. “Mikaela is doing relatively well, considering the circumstances. Nothing serious happened, no broken bones, no torn ligaments,” said US Alpine Director Patrick Riml recently.
Others were less fortunate in their falls. The all-rounder Alexis Pinturault and Shiffrin’s slalom rival Petra Vlhova, among others, had to end the season after torn cruciate ligaments. Kilde also blamed the accumulation of events surrounding the races. “It’s not sustainable, we have evening commitments everywhere. That means stress for the athletes, especially for the top ten,” he said. “We have to look at the race calendar and we athletes have to be heard. You don’t want to lose anyone because of injuries.”