- Won’t compete in women’s slopestyle due to injury
Competing at the Winter Olympics just two months after rupturing her ACL, Australian freeskier Daisy Thomas has been ruled out of her first event after crashing at training.
Set to make her Olympics debut in the qualifying round of the women’s slopestyle at Livigno’s Snow Park on Saturday morning (8:30pm AEDT), the 18-year-old will miss the event after she re-injured the same knee.
Thomas has also qualified for the women’s freeski big air event which begins on February 14 and she remains hopeful of taking part.
The Sydneysider fell on the final jump of training and was taken off on a stretcher from the course on Friday, later posting on social media later she’d made the call to withdraw.
‘I’ve made the decision along with my medical and support team to pull from slopestyle in order to reset, refocus and channel my energy into Big Air,’ Thomas posted on Instagram.
‘I am doing all good and am keen to get training for Big Air.’
Competing at the Winter Olympics just two months after rupturing her ACL, Aussie freeskier Daisy Thomas has been ruled out of her first event after crashing at training
The Australian Olympic team earlier issued a statement that Thomas was undergoing an MRI, and confirmed she had been cleared to compete despite the major injury suffered last November.
‘Thomas arrived in Livigno after having undergone a comprehensive rehabilitation and testing process in order to compete without an ACL,’ a statement from the Australian Olympic team read.
Despite the setback, Thomas remains 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.
She was on track for a medal in the Secret Garden competition, qualifying second for the finals.
Despite the seriousness of the injury, Thomas refused to give up on her Olympic dream and was back competing 47 days later at the Laax Open in Switzerland.
The young daredevil said this week she wasn’t bothered by the injury.
Thomas also qualified for the women’s freeski big air event which begins on February 14 and the teen from Sydney remains hopeful of taking part
The young gun is the second Australian athlete in danger of missing competition following aerialist Laura Peel, who also suffered a knee injury in training
‘I did my ACL about a month-and-a-half ago, so I’m just skiing without an ACL at the minute,’ Thomas said after a practice run in Livigno on Thursday.
‘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.
The 36-year-old is aiming to participate in her fourth Olympic Games and finally claim a medal after finishing fifth at Beijing 2022.
