A devastating blow for Australian skier Daisy Thomas as a training crash on the eve of her Winter Olympics debut ends her hopes for the women's slopestyle event.
Just two months after rupturing her ACL, Thomas was set to make her Olympic debut in the qualifying round of the women's slopestyle at Livigno's Snow Park on Saturday (8.30pm AEDT). However, the 18-year-old will miss the event after re-injuring the same knee during training.
Despite this setback, Thomas remains hopeful of participating in the women's freeski big air event, which begins on 14 February. She fell on the final jump of training and was taken off the course on a stretcher on Friday, later announcing her withdrawal.
In a statement on Instagram, Thomas said, "I’ve made the decision along with my medical and support team to pull from Slopestyle tomorrow in order to reset, refocus and channel my energy into Big Air. I am doing all good and am keen to get training for Big Air."
The Australian Olympic team had earlier confirmed that Thomas had been cleared to compete despite the major injury suffered last November, having undergone a comprehensive rehabilitation and testing process. Despite the setback, Thomas is still on track to join alpine great Lindsey Vonn in competing in Milan-Cortina without an ACL.
Vonn revealed this week she ruptured her ACL in a crash in the last event before her fifth Olympics, but the American veteran completed training on Friday and will line up in the blue riband women’s downhill.
Thomas had crashed in a World Cup freeski big air event in China in late November, and the initial prognosis was that the injury would rule her out of making an Olympics debut. However, she refused to give up on her Olympic dream and was back competing 47 days later at the Laax Open in Switzerland.
Speaking after a practice run in Livigno on Thursday, Thomas said, "I did my ACL about a month-and-a-half ago, so I’m just skiing without an ACL at the minute. I’m strong enough, I’m capable enough, and I’ve got my tricks back, so I’m able to do it and I don’t really notice it at all. The goal still remains the same - I’d love to get an Olympic medal."
Thomas is the second Australian athlete in danger of missing competition, following aerialist Laura Peel, who suffered a knee injury in training. Peel, a 36-year-old aiming to participate in her fourth Olympic Games and finally claim a medal, is not yet ready to make a decision about her event, which is scheduled for 17 February.
Team chef de mission Alisa Camplin said, "She’s working with her coaches and physios and sports psychologists trying to work out what is the plan for every single day. She’s still got many days until her competition. I think sometimes we forget that every athlete’s journey into the Olympics is a total rollercoaster and there’s so many ups and downs. There’s actually no perfect preparation. You’ve just got to roll with what happens and make your best decisions so that you bring what you can when you get to the start gate."
Despite the setbacks, Thomas and Peel remain determined to make the most of their Olympic experiences, with Thomas focusing on the big air event and Peel working towards her goal of finally claiming a medal.
