"Small miracle"

Fixed! ÖSV ace returns after more than two years

The "Krone" had already hinted at it on Wednesday morning, now it's confirmed: Christian Hirschbühl from Vorarlberg will return to the World Cup on Saturday after a 112-week injury break in the slalom in Kranjska Gora (Slo).

"For me, it's almost a small miracle that I can ski again now," admits the 33-year-old, who crashed into a pole so unfortunately on the second run of the slalom classic in Wengen on January 16, 2022 that he suffered extremely complicated fractures in his right leg.

"14 months ago, it didn't look like I would be able to make it back to the race track," admits the Lauterach native. But giving up was not an option despite a total of five operations, some of which lasted up to eight hours. At the beginning of January, "Hirschi" then returned to training with the ÖSV team. 

783 days after the Wengen crash
In the Kranjska Gora slalom on Saturday, the comeback follows 783 days after the disastrous Wengen crash. "I'm just happy that I can be there," says the Rossignol pilot, who also celebrated a World Cup victory at the Flexenrace in Zürs in November 2021.

+++ Update, 3.30 pm: +++

After the slalom in Kranjska Gora had to be canceled due to continuous rain, Christian Hirschbühl's World Cup comeback has been delayed indefinitely.