Can You Ski With a Torn ACL?

Skier Lindsey Vonn said she plans to still compete at the upcoming Milano Cortina Winter Olympics despite sustaining a serious knee injury about a week before her first race. 

Vonn, 41, wrote in a Feb. 3 social media post that she “completely” ruptured the ACL, or anterior cruciate ligament, in her left knee after crashing during a World Cup downhill event on Jan. 30. She said she also suffered a bone bruise and tears of the meniscus, a piece of cartilage in the knee that acts as a shock absorber.

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Despite the injury, Vonn said her Olympic dream “is not over.” Her first Olympic race—the women’s downhill event—is on Sunday, Feb. 8. “After extensive consultations with doctors, intense therapy, physical tests as well as skiing today, I have determined I am capable of competing in the Olympic Downhill on Sunday,” she wrote.

Can you ski with a torn ACL?

For athletes involved in sports where the ACL, which stabilizes the knee joint, is more likely to be injured, reconstructive surgery and months of physical therapy are typically recommended before a return to the sport, says Dr. Anthony Petrosini, an orthopedic sports medicine surgeon at Hackensack Meridian Jersey Shore University Medical Center.

“If this was a high school or college athlete, the recommendation would be to not compete with this injury,” says Petrosini, who didn’t treat the Olympian. “But Lindsey Vonn is a one of one case. If anybody is going to do it, it’s going to be her.”

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Vonn said that despite her injuries, her knee is “stable” and her muscles “are firing and reacting as they should.” She said she intends to compete with a brace. 

“[A]s long as I have a chance, I will not lose hope. I will not give up!” said Vonn, a five-time Olympian who returned to skiing in 2024 after injuries forced her into retirement more than five years prior. 

What causes ACL injuries?

ACL injuries are common in activities which require athletes to change direction, jump, or stop suddenly, such as soccer, football, wrestling, and skiing. ACL injuries can range from sprains and partial tears to complete ruptures.

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In cases where someone’s ACL is completely torn—like Vonn’s—competing probably won’t damage it more, says Petrosini. But without surgery to correct an ACL rupture, other structures of the knee will be at greater risk of injury during high-impact activities such as skiing, even if someone wears a brace, he says.

How do you treat a torn ACL?

Surgery isn’t always required for people with torn or ruptured ACLs, Petrosini says. Rest and physical therapy may be sufficient for people with minor injuries or those who don’t engage in sports. But anyone who suffers an ACL injury should see a doctor and review the severity of their injury, potential risks, and treatment options, Petrosini says.

“The longer you go without addressing the injury, the more likely you are to sustain damage to the cartilage,” he says, which can lead to future problems such as arthritis.