Tereza Nova is working her way back into her life day by day. © Instagram / Tereza Nova

Paralyzed on one side: Ski ace reports after horror crash

Almost four months after her serious fall in Garmisch-Partenkirchen, a ski ace is fighting her way back to life, stage by stage. The 27-year-old is currently confined to a wheelchair, unable to move the left side of her body. Nevertheless, she has now given her first interview.

07 May 2025

From: never

On January 24, Tereza Nova participated in the final training session for the women's downhill races at the World Cup in Garmisch-Partenkirchen. The Czech speed specialist, who has competed 2019 times on the big stage since 15, difficult to fallSince then, nothing has been the same for the 27-year-old. Nova suffered a severe traumatic brain injury with bleeding, a carotid artery injury, and a fractured eye socket.

She was then placed in an artificial coma, from which she awoke about a month laterShe faced a lengthy rehabilitation phase. "We still have a long way to go, but I'm convinced we'll make it," her partner Ondrej Berndt explained at the time. In the weeks that followed, Nova was already making significant progress.

Nova: “So I can walk again”

“From a girl who didn’t speak and just lay there, to a girl who speaks, writes short messages on Whatsapp and drinks coffee with us in her wheelchair,” said her father Josef Nova in an interview with the Czech TV station CT an insight. "This is a significant step forward."

Tereza Nova at the 2022 Winter Olympics. © AFP / FABRICE COFFRINI

Nova herself also had her say. She is currently confined to a wheelchair and cannot yet move the left side of her body. She also wears a helmet because she had to have a skull bone removed. This will be replaced with an implant in a future operation. But that is not stopping her. "I'm trying to work hard so that I can walk again," she explained, highlighting her dream. "And then maybe even ski again." When a return to the slopes, let alone the World Cup, might be possible, is still too early to say. The support of her family gives her enormous strength. "My boyfriend is also very supportive," said Nova.