Serious injuries
After falling in training: Olympic exit for ski star
January 4, 2026 – 7:16 a.mReading time: 1 min.
Her fall during training gave rise to fears of the worst. Now it is clear: Katharina Liensberger’s dream of the Olympics has actually shattered.
Katharina Liensberger has to bury her dream of the Winter Olympics. The ski racer suffered serious knee injuries in a training fall in St. Michael and will miss the competitions in Milan and Cortina d”Ampezzo. She now announced this via Instagram.
“The Olympic season is over,” said Liensberger. The Austrian thanked her supporters, who “give me the courage to look forward.” Her “entire focus is now on all-encompassing optimal healing,” she continued.
After the accident on Friday morning during giant slalom training, first aid was provided on site. A helicopter then took the athlete to the Hochrum Clinic near Innsbruck. An MRI scan revealed a fracture of the tibial plateau and a torn meniscus and medial ligament in the right knee. Liensberger has now undergone successful surgery.
For the technology specialist, missing the Winter Games is particularly bitter, as five years ago she was crowned double world champion in slalom and parallel giant slalom in Cortina d’Ampezzo of all places. At the last Olympic Games in Beijing in 2022, she also won gold with the team and silver in the slalom.
Most recently, Liensberger narrowly missed the podium in fourth place at the World Cup in Semmering. The Winter Olympics take place from February 6th to 22nd.