好色tv alpine skier Valerie Grenier says she is determined to return to the slopes, but doesn't know when that will happen.
Speaking to reporters via Zoom on Friday for the first time since her horrific crash at the Cortina d鈥橝mpezzo World Cup super-G Race on Jan. 28, Grenier was unable to provide a timeline for her return to action due to the severity of her injuries.
鈥淚t鈥檚 really hard to say right now,鈥 said Grenier of her recovery timeline.
鈥淚 tore my ACL (anterior cruciate ligament) and partially tore my MCL (medial collateral ligament), but we don鈥檛 know if my MCL is going to have to be repaired or not.
"Then, my meniscus might also have something. We don鈥檛 know, because, on the MRI, we couldn鈥檛 see because of the metal that鈥檚 in my leg from my previous injury. So, that鈥檚 going to tell how long the rehab is going to be or what鈥檚 going to happen."
This is not the first major crash of Grenier鈥檚 career. She broke her right leg in four places as well as her right ankle during a training run in Are, Sweden in February 2019 while travelling at approximately 130 kilometers per hour.
In addition to the ACL and MCL injuries she suffered on Jan. 28, Grenier also fractured her humerus, for which she underwent surgery to correct on Jan. 31 in Innsbruck, Austria before returning to home to St. Isidore, ON on Feb. 3.
The 27-year-old is now set to undergo knee surgery in the coming days. However, given the recency of her shoulder procedure, the rehabilitation process for that is unclear, as well.
鈥淒epending on if I can put weight on my knee right away, that鈥檚 going to be a bit of a struggle, too,鈥 explained Grenier.
鈥淲ith my shoulder, I won鈥檛 be able to be on crutches, so I might need to use a wheelchair. These are all things we don鈥檛 know right now and are waiting for the surgery to figure out.鈥
Two days before the crash, Grenier finished in a three-way tie for third in the downhill competition to earn the first downhill medal of her World Cup career. Grenier has earned a total of four medals on the World Cup circuit thus far, most recently capturing gold for the second consecutive year on Jan. 6 in the giant slalom competition in Kranjska Gora, Slovenia.
Although Grenier said the condensed World Cup schedule was being a factor in exacerbating the fatigue herself and her fellow athletes feel throughout the season, she is staying positive, opting instead to blame her circumstances on the sheer randomness of high-performance sport.
鈥淚 think there鈥檚 a lot of bad luck,鈥 said Grenier of her crash.
鈥淚njuries happen. It鈥檚 a part of our sport. We do a sport that has very high chances of getting injured. We take a lot of risks. So, I think it鈥檚 just a part of the game, unfortunately.鈥
Grenier made it clear that this crash won鈥檛 stop her from taking those risks, either. The mental toll of her crash in 2019 forced Grenier to focus on the slower GS races upon recovery before eventually working her way back to the more speed-dominant downhill and super-G over multiple years. But Grenier feels she has the experience to whether that mental storm this time around.
"At first, I鈥檒l once again focus on GS, as it's easier to focus on skiing, But I plan to do speed again,鈥 said Grenier of her future plans.
"And I feel like, since my last injury, I鈥檝e become a much better skier technically, and that helps so much with speed, that I鈥檇 say I鈥檓 on another level compared to the last time. I don鈥檛 think that will be much of an issue for me.
"I've accepted it. And I want to come back to speed, for sure."
This report by 好色tvwas first published Feb. 9, 2024.
