Career in danger?

Goggia sounds the alarm: “Pain won’t go away”

Following her serious injury in February, Italian ski racer Sofia Goggia has spoken about her return to the ski circus. The Olympic champion was quite emotional and explained that a comeback is still up in the air. "I can't even walk properly yet," explains the 31-year-old. That's why the worst-case scenario is that she will miss the entire coming season. 

"The doctors said I should start skiing again after six months. According to Dr. Panzeri, the pain won't go away and I have to learn to deal with it," Goggia tells Corriere della Sera. In February, the Italian fell during training and suffered a fracture to her tibia and tibial malleolus. 

Even after the operation, the pain persisted, as the 31-year-old recounts. She even expects to have further problems with her shin in the future. Her sporting comeback will definitely be affected by this: "I need to understand how I can alleviate the pain when I put on my ski boots," says Goggia honestly. She is trying to counteract this with an experimental, custom-made carbon splint. 

Tears under her ski goggles
Nevertheless, she is fighting back and has already been back on skis. This was also a painful experience, as the four-time downhill World Cup winner reveals: "I cried under my ski goggles." She would like to return to Italian team training in August, although she is aware that this is not necessarily a realistic goal.

Meanwhile, her coach Gianluca Rulfi is already talking about a possible worst-case scenario. Goggia could miss the entire season and therefore also the World Championships in Saalbach-Hinterglemm. Instead, the focus should then be placed entirely on the 2026 Olympics. It is definitely worth considering at the moment, says the ski racer, as it is certainly the worst injury she has ever experienced. 

"I had a difficult phase in which I thought I would never be able to ski at a high level again," Goggia admits honestly. However, she was able to get out of the valley and wants to prove to herself and the whole world that it is not yet time to hang up her skis.