Two absolute ski greats are set to make their comeback this weekend. Both Sofia Goggia and Lindsey Vonn want to attack again after a long period of suffering.
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- Eight months after her serious training accident, Sofia Goggia is about to make her comeback in Beaver Creek.
- "I wasn't able to walk for 45 days," the Italian looks back.
- Goggia is not only looking forward to returning to the World Cup, but also to seeing Lindsey Vonn again. The latter has spoken out with a challenge on Instagram.
In recent weeks, much of the ski circus has revolved around Lindsey Vonn's upcoming comeback. It was almost forgotten that another absolute top athlete will also be returning to the slopes this weekend in Beaver Creek: Sofia Goggia.
The Italian had an accident at the beginning of February during giant slalom training in Ponte Di Legno, breaking the tibia and tibial malleolus of her right leg. Goggia fell into a deep hole and was already thinking about the end of her career. "The fracture was very complicated," she explained at a press conference on Monday. "The doctors didn't know how to put the bones back together. I couldn't walk for 45 days."
It was a "nightmare", says the 24-time World Cup winner. Physically, mentally and emotionally, she went through a difficult time. "And yet I now have the feeling that nothing has happened. My leg and foot are doing excellently," she says now. The last few weeks have shown her that she can fully attack again.
Goggia: "I'm not always relaxed and happy. To be able to perform well, my enjoyment of skiing is the be-all and end-all. And it's precisely this joy that I've regained in the last month." At the beginning, she was still a little rusty, "but now I feel very good - also in terms of tuning," she says. "I thought I was going to be more scared."
Goggia's worries about Vonn
Fear is also an absolute foreign word for Lindsey Vonn. The 40-year-old is daring to make her comeback five years after her retirement - with an artificial knee, of course. On the one hand, Goggia is looking forward to seeing her friend again, but she is also worried.
"When I found out that Lindsey wanted to come back, I was over the moon. Because it means she's doing well. We have the opportunity to share beautiful moments together again," says Goggia. "On the other hand, I'm also worried because I really like her. But this feeling applies to everyone, because we know that we are practising a dangerous sport."
Vonn herself feels more than ready for her comeback. After good test runs at the weekend in Copper Mountain, the World Cup return is now set to follow in Beaver Creek. "Step by step, I'm getting stronger and finding my form," writes the US American on Instagram. "On to the next race, let's have fun!"
