End of the season: World champion Alexander Schmid tears his cruciate ligament again

Ski racer Alexander Schmid had a solid start to the season. Now the world champion in the parallel giant slalom has torn his cruciate ligament again during training. This means he will also miss the World Ski Championships in Saalbach-Hinterglemm in February.

On Thursday during training before the World Cup in Val Gardena, German ski racer Alexander Schmid tore the anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee. He also sustained “injuries to the menisci,” as the German Ski Association (DSV) announced.

Bad news for the Allgäu native, who had to endure a torn cruciate ligament in the same knee in 2023, and also for the DSV, from which more and more athletes are leaving injured.

The fourth serious injury in the DSV team

“There is actually a horror report every week,” said head coach Christian Schwaiger in the BR interview. “We had Jacob (Schramm) at the beginning of the week, who broke his elbow, then last week with Sebi (Holzmann). In the fall it was Nickco Palamaras, actually our best boy, a young athlete – also a cruciate ligament tear. So if this continues, I don’t know.

Torn cruciate ligament in the same knee as in 2023

According to the DSV, Schmid tore his left cruciate ligament while driving without falling. It is the same knee as in March 2023. At that time, the giant slalom specialist had recently become the first German to win World Cup gold for Germany at the Alpine World Ski Championships in Courchevel/Meribel since Hansjörg Tauscher in 1989. The 30-year-old will remain the last world champion in the parallel giant slalom because the FIS has removed the discipline from the program.

“We’re very unlucky at the moment and of course it’s a shame that it’s happened for the second time in two years with Alex, that’s tragic,” said Schwaiger. Schmid’s season got off to a promising start in the giant slalom with twelfth place in Beaver Creek and 15th place in Val d’Isère.

Schmid mourns: “I wasn’t able to regenerate properly”

After the “Face de Bellevarde” race, Alexander Schmid gave an emotional interview on ZDF. The 30-year-old dedicated his run to a friend who recently died: “The journey home was simply extreme and I wasn’t able to regenerate properly at home, that really wore me out. And yes, I didn’t feel well today and yes, “Mentally – yes, a very good friend who we lost this week. She was a mental support for me.”

Schmid misses the World Ski Championships in Saalbach-Hinterglemm

The ski racer from Fischen im Allgäu has proven several times that he can achieve great achievements in difficult weather conditions. Now Schmid has to fight through another dense snowfall. The man from SC Fischen was operated on in Munich on Friday morning. The one and a half hour operation was “positive and free of complications”. “Assuming a favorable healing process, snow training will be possible again in about eight months,” says the treating physician, Dr. Manuel Köhne quoted. Schmid’s season ended prematurely due to the serious injury. The 30-year-old will also miss the World Ski Championships in Saalbach-Hinterglemm.

Video: Felix Neureuther is “shocked” by Schmid’s injury

Source: BR24 December 20, 2024 – 6:30 p.m