Keely Kelleher suffers broken leg in downhill training

Keely Kelleher suffers broken leg in downhill training{mosimage}Keely Kelleher, a Montanan who had several top-three Europa Cup finishes last year, broke the tibia and fibula in her right leg in downhill training at Beaver Creek, Colorado, on November 18. She underwent surgery at the Steadman-Hawkins Clinic in Vail, where Dr. Bill Sterritt inserted a rod and three screws to secure the broken bones.

Kelleher, who went straight from the junior ranks (Rowmark Ski Academy) to the C Team last season, is known for her fearlessness and competitive spirit.

Examining the video, coaches say that Kelleher came into a right-footed turn with weight on the inside ski; her right ski hit a small bump and “kicked her leg upward,” breaking both bones in the lower leg.

“Once the pain and swelling goes down she’ll be able to bear a little weight,” said her coach, Trevor Wagner, “but she’ll stay in the clinic until Thanksgiving and will be able to bear some more weight in six to eight weeks.”

Wagner, also from Montana, said the injury had been an emotional blow to the Europa Cup women’s team, but that Kelleher had appreciated the visits that teammates and friends from the ski racing community had made to the clinic.