Federica Brignone's Comeback: Alpine Skier Ready to Compete After Injury

Italian Alpine skier Federica Brignone will return to competitive World Cup action on Tuesday, 20 January in the giant slalom in Kronplatz, the athlete announced during a press conference on Monday (19 January). “For me, it’s really fantastic to be here and to be competing tomorrow,” Brignone said. “What better place than in Italy, at home, it’s a slope that I really like, it’s a race that I’ve always liked, obviously it certainly won’t be like other years. “I’m not here to test myself, but to test my mind, my body, my leg above all," she added. "And I’m definitely not here for a great result, but for a great result for myself." The reigning giant slalom world champion and two-time overall Crystal Globe winner’s return to competition comes almost 300 days after she suffered multiple displaced fractures in her left leg at her national championships in April last year. "I'm coming back to competition after a long time and after a lot has happened," she said. "Having objectives for my performance more than results should help me be more calm, and it's already a big deal for me to have got out my sticks." Brignone's return to racing comes days after her brother and coach, Davide, said the star is hoping to be on the start gate at the upcoming Olympic Winter Games Milano Cortina 2026, which begins on 6 February. However, Brignone was cautious about saying she would be able to compete at her home Games. “Probably I always believed, otherwise I wouldn’t be here,” she said. “But it’s still difficult. I think no athlete can say they will be at the Olympics until they put their poles out the start gate, in our sport especially, anything can happen.'"