Italian Alpine skier Federica Brignone sustained a displaced, comminuted fracture of the tibial plateau and fibular head in her left leg, plus ligament damage, in a crash in the Italian Championships giant slalom on Thursday, according to the International Ski and Snowboard Federation.
A comminuted fracture is when a bone is broken into three or more pieces.
Brignone, this season’s World Cup overall champion, underwent successful surgery, according to the federation.
“I will have to face a new challenge in which I will give my all, as always,” she said after the surgery, according to a translation of an Italian press agency ANSA report.
On Thursday, Brignone posted a picture of herself smiling.
“As usual, I do things big or I don’t do it!” the caption read, according to a translation. “This time I got it big (negatively).”
Brignone, 34, is coming off her second World Cup overall title, the biggest annual prize in ski racing that goes to the skier who has the best combined results across all disciplines (downhill, super-G, giant slalom and slalom).
Brignone won 10 races this World Cup season, which ended last week, among downhill, super-G and giant slalom. She did not race any slaloms. No other woman won more than four times.
Brignone also won the giant slalom and placed second in the super-G at the World Championships in February.
At full health, Brignone would be a contender for downhill, super-G and giant slalom medals at the Milan Cortina Olympics in her home country in February 2026.
The next World Cup season is expected to start in late October.
