For the long-term injured ski world champion and overall World Cup winner Federica Brignone, a start at the Olympic Winter Games in Milan and Cortina d’Ampezzo (February 6 to 22, 2026) appears increasingly hopeless.
“I think it will be impossible for me to get back into competition before January or right before the Olympic Games,” the 35-year-old Italian told the AFP news agency on the sidelines of a media event in Milan.
After her serious fall at the Italian championships in April, in which she suffered a broken tibia and fibula as well as a torn cruciate ligament in her left leg, she “didn’t even put my skis on,” but was “in pain every day.”
Up to seven hours of rehabilitation every day
Brignone underwent two operations, spends “five to seven hours” in physical therapy every day and works “just to recover from the injury. And that means that I work really hard, because otherwise I would have one leg that has a completely different shape than the other.”
Brignone dominated the World Cup last season and secured the big crystal globe and the overall ranking in the downhill and giant slalom with a total of ten victories. At the World Championships in Saalbach-Hinterglemm she won gold in the giant slalom and silver in the super-G.
The Milan native is still missing Olympic gold from her collection. The new World Cup season begins on October 25th in Sölden/Austria.