Cruciate ligament tears are a major risk in football and ski racing, especially for women. How can this be changed?
The World Cup season has just really started to get going and a number of female ski racers have already been slowed down by injuries. Particularly noticeable this winter: the high number of cruciate ligament tears in women.
Lauren Macuga, Lara Gut-Behrami and Michelle Gisin are just the most prominent athletes who tore their cruciate ligaments this Olympic season and thus lost their chance at medals. The German Ski Association (DSV) also did not remain unscathed: two German European Cup riders, Katharina Lechner and Paulina Schlosser, tore their cruciate ligaments.
“For us as athletes, a small world collapses”
Cruciate ligament tears are among the most serious injuries in alpine ski racing. Melanie Michel knows this from her own experience: “For us as athletes, a small world collapses,” she says in the documentary “Young. Female. Cruciate Ligament Torn.” The Swiss European Cup athlete has already suffered two cruciate ligament tears – both in ski races. She suffered the second one during her comeback to competition.
Riesch had at that time “Pain from Hell”
Even the highly decorated Maria Riesch was not spared during her career: between three Olympic gold medals, between World Cup successes and her World Cup victories, Riesch was set back by two cruciate ligament tears: “The moments were horrible when it happened,” she says in the documentary. Riesch missed the 2006 Olympic Games in Turin. In addition to the “hellish pain,” she was also “plagued by the awareness of what was happening again and what that meant.”
Study in football shows: risk higher for women
The risk of suffering a cruciate ligament tear is four times higher in women than in men, a study in women’s football shows. In women’s football, prominent cases like that of Lena Oberdorf highlight the problem. Specifically, there have been eight cruciate ligament tears in the women’s Bundesliga this season (as of December 3rd). At the start of the season there was one for every match day.
There is also evidence that women are more often affected in ski racing: In the past five years, the German Ski Association (DSV) registered 35 cruciate ligament tears: 19 in women, 16 in men (as of November 26, 2025). Relatively speaking, the difference is even greater: on average, there were eight cruciate ligament tears per 100 female athletes, and only four for every 100 athletes.
Anatomy, muscles – and the cycle
The causes are diverse. In women, the anterior cruciate ligament is often narrower and the joint space in the knee is narrower. Muscular balance also plays a crucial role: If the hamstring muscles are relatively weak, the cruciate ligament lacks stability.
There is also the factor of the female cycle. Studies show an increased risk of injury during menstruation and around ovulation. During these phases, hormone levels and tissue elasticity change – while at the same time high performance. Clubs in the women’s Bundesliga such as FC Bayern, FC Carl Zeiss Jena and SC Freiburg integrate the cycle into their players’ training. Special muscle activation can also prevent cruciate ligament tears.
Melanie Michel was close to menstruation when she tore her cruciate ligament for the first time and was close to ovulation during her second. Even if the female cycle has not yet been fully researched, scientific findings such as these are already being incorporated into training concepts – for example through cycle-based training or load adjustments.
Material as an additional risk factor
Unlike football, for example, the aggressive material is increasingly used in ski racing. “In alpine skiing everything is becoming more and more aggressive, the slopes are getting harder,” says Melanie Michel’s service man Simone Sperinde. In ski racing, you react to hard and aggressively prepared racing slopes with equally aggressive material. The problem: The harder the set-up, the greater the risk of injury. “
The discussions about the many injuries in ski racing are not new. In recent years there have been repeated serious knee injuries that have set athletes back.
Step by step to the comeback
When it comes to cruciate ligament tears, the ski associations no longer leave anything to chance: the cycle is tracked precisely and the knee is strengthened with special exercises. After a cruciate ligament tear, every step from the operation to the comeback is precisely defined: rehab, strength training, back-to-snow test, first ski training, back-to-race test, the first competition.
The risk of a new crack is 30 percent
Cruciate ligament tears cannot be completely avoided. And the risk of tearing the cruciate ligament again is also high. The risk of another crack is around 30 percent.
For Melanie Michel and many colleagues in alpine ski racing, this wasn’t an obstacle: “I had to think about it: Do you still want to do this? Is it worth it to you? What do you want in your life? I was then able to answer the questions really quickly,” says Michel and adds: “Every time I take a turn, I feel pure adrenaline and joy. Every time I’m on a mountain, I feel at home.”
Source: BR24 December 22, 2025 – 5:00 p.m
