Ledecká out of Lake Louise races with collarbone injury

Three-time Olympic skiing and snowboarding gold medalist Ester Ledecká will not be at the start for the season-opening Lake Louise World Cup speed races this weekend.

The Czech multi-sport athlete announced on Monday that she is still recovering from a comminuted fracture of her collarbone sustained in a crash during off-season training. Consequently, she will miss the two downhills and one super-G scheduled for Canada.

Ledecká said she needed to undergo a follow-up operation last week in Innsbruck as her recovery hasn’t gone as hoped. Upon consultation with her Austrian doctors and Czech physiotherapist Pavel Kolář, Ledecká reported that she is postponing her skiing and snowboarding training until after the New Year.

“I would like to thank Dr. Sperner from the Kettenbrückeclinic in Innsbruck and Robert Trenkwalder from Red Bull for providing top-quality care,” Ledecká said. “I will do my best to return to the start of races next year at full strength.”

Planning past the injury

Ledecká, 27, still has her sights set on the 2023 Alpine Ski World Championships, February 6-19, in Méribel and Courchevel, France. Shortly after that, she also plans to compete in the Snowboard World Championships that kick off two weeks later in Bakuriani, Georgia.

The Czech star also revealed the unfortunate news to her Instagram followers.

“Hi everybody, as you have probably noticed, my posts from the mountains have been very few lately and you’re probably wondering why. The reason is my collarbone, which didn’t heal as it should have, so I had to have another operation with Dr. Sperner in Innsbruck.”

Ledecká also noted: “I will consult Professor Kolář  about the rehabilitation plan. Please be patient, as I have to be patient now, and keep your fingers crossed for me that everything heals as it should.”

In addition to a trio of Lake Louise races, Ledecká will also miss downhill and super-G races scheduled for St. Moritz, December 16-18. The next possible opportunity for her to begin her ski racing season is in St. Anton, January 14-15.

New season, but downhill title hopes dashed?

Being forced to sit out at least two of seven weekends of scheduled speed events on the 2022-23 calendar, it appears that Ledecká’s aspirations of becoming the first Czech ski racer to win a World Cup title will have to wait another season.

Ledecká finished third in last season’s World Cup downhill standings. She tallied 339 points, 165 behind downhill globe winner Sofia Goggia. The Czech star was also the runner-up in the standings in 2020, finishing 155 points behind Corinne Suter.

The upcoming season will also bring significant change for Ledecká and the team around her. She officially announced in August that she is leaving Atomic after 11 years of racing and transitioning to the Austrian-Czech brand Kästle. Ledecká will work with renowned serviceman Guntram “Tschunti” Mathis. Mathis has previously tuned skis for overall World Cup champion Alexis Pinturault and Olympic champion Bode Miller.

Ledecká skied well at the Beijing 2022 Olympics in February but couldn’t duplicate the magic of the PyeongChang 2018 Games. She finished fourth in the alpine combined and fifth in the super-G while attempting to defend her Olympic title. However, Ledecká successfully defended her Olympic snowboard parallel giant slalom gold medal from PyeongChang 2018.

Near miracle in Pyeongchang

Ledecká will always be remembered for her absolutely shocking gold medal winning super-G run at PyeongChang 2018. She charged from the back of the pack, bib 26, and stole what seemed like a sure victory from Austrian Anna Fenninger. The unbelievable performance left the ski and sports world, and even Ester herself, in utter disbelief. 

Not until after her stunning Olympic performance did the Czech racer win her first World Cup victory. The victory came in a Lake Louise downhill in December 2019. Ledecká has eight World Cup podiums, including three wins to her credit (Lake Louise DH, December 6, 2019; Val d’Isere super-G, December 2020; and Crans-Montana DH, February 2022).

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