Federica Brignone is seriously injured. © ANSA / JEAN-CHRISTOPHE BOTT

Brignone's race: "That wasn't necessary"

The shock in the Italian ski camp is deep: The country's best athlete suffered a serious injury at the Italian Championships on Thursday. Now a race against time begins for Federica Brignone.

04 April 2025

From: dl

On Thursday evening, Brignone underwent surgery in Milan under FISI chief physician Andrea Panzeri at the La Madonnina clinic. He was diagnosed with a comminuted fracture of the left tibial head and a fracture of the left fibula, as well as a torn cruciate ligament. Furthermore, the lateral ligament of his left knee was damaged. So the worst fears after the serious fall came true.

The procedure lasted several hours and went perfectly, the FISI said. However, the fact remains: Brignone will be out for over six months. Ski training will only be possible after six to nine months. It's quite possible that "Fede" won't return to the World Cup until 2026 and will skip all the races at the beginning of the season. One thing is clear: The 34-year-old has already won everything in her career; all she's missing is Olympic gold.

Federica Brignone suffered a serious crash at the Italian Championship. © ANSA / PHOTO ELVIS GP PIAZZI/SOLERO

The Olympic Games in Cortina begin for women's skiing on February 8, 2026, ten months from now, with the downhill. Brignone is known as a fighter and will give her all to be competitive again by then. Provided there are no major complications during her rehabilitation and return to skiing, her participation in the Olympics is also realistic. This would be Brignone's last big dream, as she recently confirmed, especially because it's her home Olympics.

“I didn’t need that at the best of my career.” Federico Brignone

Speaking to the Italian news agency HANDLE One day after her serious crash, Brignone spoke out for the first time: "I didn't need that in the best phase of my career. Now I have to face a new challenge. The track conditions were good. Even in retrospect, I would do everything the same again and try not to crash this time."