“The lowest point of my life”: Slalom star opens up about his time of suffering

Atle Lie McGrath is among the top contenders in the technical disciplines this World Cup winter. However, the Norwegian has recently gone through a difficult period, which he has now spoken openly about.

31 December 2025

From: never

Just a few days before Christmas, Atle Lie McGrath gave himself the best present: at the World Cup in Alta Badia. The 25-year-old swung to victory in the slalom. and celebrated the fourth World Cup victory of his career. The decision was a real thriller, as he was nine hundredths of a second behind Clement Noel after the first run. However, the Frenchman lost almost four tenths to McGrath and thus fell behind his competitor.

“That took a lot of strength. To stand there and know I had a chance. To fail, as I've done so many times this season, and then finally succeed, is incredible,” McGrath explained afterwards. A liberation for the Saalbach runner-up world champion – also considering his past.

McGrath was set back significantly by a cruciate ligament tear.

At the 2023 World Championships in Courchevel, the Scandinavian's meteoric rise was abruptly halted: McGrath suffered a torn cruciate ligament in the Super-G. "The worst-case scenario happened," he recalled in the podcast. Alpine Pulse about the injury. “Because everything happened so fast, I don’t even remember how it happened. But I do remember crashing into the net at about 100 km/h. I immediately felt that something was wrong.”

"Sitting there and knowing, 'Yes, I'm at the end of my rope.' That was probably the lowest point of my life." Atle Lie McGrath

While McGrath had already experienced injury-related breaks, this time it was different – especially considering his potential in his strongest disciplines. From 100 to 0 in a matter of moments. "That was one of the biggest setbacks of my career. To sit there and know: 'Yes, I'm finished.' That was probably the lowest point of my life," McGrath described. "During that time, I was alone. Physically, I fought, but mentally it was also very, very tough."

McGrath: "That bothered me."

For the first three to four months, the youngster had to come to terms with only being able to follow the World Cup from home. "I watched the races and saw my teammates Henrik Kristoffersen and Lucas Braathen win titles," he said. "Maybe I wouldn't have won them myself, but I couldn't share those moments with them. And that feeling really bothered me. I struggled with it for many months."

McGrath has found his way back to the top. © ANSA / ANDREA SOLERO

Nine months later, he made his comeback on the big stage, but he had to wait until January 2025 in Wengen for his first victory after his injury. McGrath is now once again among the best skiers in the world and is in top form just weeks before the Olympic Games (February 6-22). In addition to his victory in Alta Badia, he has celebrated two further podium finishes this season: he took third place in both the slalom in Gurgl and the giant slalom in Sölden.

Keywords Winter sports Alpine skiing Atle Lie McGrath