Lara Gut-Behrami announced her retirement from alpine skiing on Thursday, closing a career that includes an Olympic super‑G gold from the 2022 Beijing Games and two world titles earned in 2021. The Swiss speed specialist also claimed overall World Cup championships in 2016 and 2024, and amassed 48 World Cup victories – 24 of them in super‑G – placing her fifth on the all‑time women's list.
The decision follows a severe knee injury sustained during a training run at Copper Mountain, Colorado, in November, where she ruptured ligaments in her left knee and damaged the meniscus. The injury prevented her from competing in the season's final races and forced her out of the Milan‑Cortina Olympics, which would have marked her fourth Winter Games. Gut‑Behrami previously missed the 2010 Vancouver Olympics due to a hip injury and suffered a left
The timing of Lara Gut-Behrami's retirement, shaped by a severe knee injury and her desire to preserve long-term health, highlights the physical toll of elite alpine skiing despite her sustained success over nearly two decades. This matters to fans and fellow athletes because it underscores the fine line between pushing limits in sport and knowing when to step away, especially after multiple major injuries.
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