Season over for Svenja Wuerth

Germany's Svenja Wuerth sustained a serious knee injury when she crashed in the team competition at the Ladies World Cup in Hinterzarten (GER) and will be out for the rest of the season.

The German Ski Association (DSV) announced on Tuesday that an ACL tear in her left knee was diagnosed in an MRI exam on Monday. The 24-year-old will now have to undergo surgery in Munich.

"I already mastered other challenges in 2014 and I'll accept this situation as well. The first frustration is over, now I'm looking ahead - not to the Olympic Games in PyeongChang anymore, but to the World Championships in Seefeld 2019", the mixed team World Champion is quoted on the website of the German Ski Association.

"The start of the season went very well for me. I was working hard to get into this good shape and now I'll be just as focused on the rehabilitation. I want to be fit again for next season. But first I want to thank my team: In moments like these it's important to get such a support and it's giving me a lot of strength!"

Like the athlete herself, head coach Andreas Bauer is also looking ahead again, despite the disappointment: "This is a bitter diagnosis for Svenja and for us as a team. She already missed the Olympics in Sochi due to an injury and now it happens to her again, just seven weeks before PyeongChang. But Svenja is a very professional and strong athlete who always gets back up again."