Lara Malsiner has suffered a serious knee injury. © ANSA / Christopher Neundorf

Olympic dream shattered: Malsiner tears his cruciate ligament

After Lara Malsiner's training crash a few days ago, the worst fears have come true. The ski jumper from South Tyrol tore her cruciate ligament, among other injuries, and now has to give up her dream of competing in the Olympics.

August 11, 2025

From: never

Last weekend, the ski jumpers came into focus for the first time since the World Cup finals four and a half months ago, as the elite returned to competition mode at the Summer Grand Prix in Courchevel, France. However, the spectacle had to be without Italy's best ski jumper. Lara Malsiner injured her knee in a fall during training on Friday. How serious the injury would be, The woman from Val Gardena could only guess. The diagnosis has been official since Monday.

"Lara Malsiner was examined by doctors at the sports clinic in Ortisei," the Italian Winter Sports Federation (FISI) announced in a press release. "A torn cruciate ligament, as well as the medial and lateral meniscus, and a strain of the collateral ligament were diagnosed in her left knee, while her right knee suffered a meniscus injury." A torn cruciate ligament typically results in an injury time of around six months, but combined with the other injuries, the prognosis is even more difficult. In other words: the season is over before it even began—and her dream of the 2026 Olympic Games has been dashed.

Malsiner: “I was expecting this”

This was bad news for Malsiner, who had achieved several top-10 finishes in the previous World Cup season. Nevertheless, she took the news calmly. "To be honest, I was expecting this. The first tests suggested it. And the knee... everything was kind of loose," Malsiner said in an interview with SportNews.

Lara Malsiner had already prepared herself for a serious injury. © APA / BARBARA GINDL

Because she was already mentally prepared, the 25-year-old was able to switch gears immediately. "First, I called my physiotherapist in Bolzano for advice. What's the best approach for the operation, what's best for rehab?" Malsiner continued. The World Cup athlete will undergo surgery on Wednesday, and a donor tendon will be used to reconstruct her cruciate ligament. Why not use her own tendon? "If you take it from your own tissue, it's essentially another minor injury and another stress for the body. And that's simply not needed right now," she explained.

Strength through family and friends

While the ski jumping elite is working toward the Olympic competitions in Predazzo in February 2026, Malsiner is now beginning her long road back to the World Cup. She knows she has strong people on her side. "My family, my friends, and also my physiotherapist, who always encourages me, give me a lot of strength," said the Val Gardena native. But another circumstance also makes her optimistic about starting her rehab.

“The fact that I’ve been back in good shape recently gives me additional strength – I know I’ve got what it takes and can get back there.” Lara Malsiner

"The fact that I've been back in good shape recently gives me additional strength – I know I've got it and can get back there," she said combatively. "I've had some difficulties in recent years, but things have been going well again this year. Even though I've suffered another setback, I know I can build on that."