Weibrecht to miss remainder of World Cup season
A dislocated left shoulder is going to keep Olympic medalist Andrew Weibrecht from competition fot he rest of the season according to US Ski Team medical director Kyle Wilkens. Wilkens made the announcement today (Jan. 7) after it was determined surgery would be required to repair the injury.
Weibrecht sustained the shoulder injury while training slalom At Hinterreit, Austria shortly before Christmas.
“I do feel kind of insulted that I was training slalom when this happened. That’s just not fair to a downhiller,” laughed Weibrecht. “But I worked hard after last season’s shoulder surgery, so I know the routine. We’ve got a really good program in place. We’ll just have to see if my family can figure out what to do with me. It’s been a long time since I’ve been home in winter.”
Weibrecht injured his right shoulder at the end of last season.
“It’s incredibly disappointing to miss races, let alone two of the biggest months of the season with Wengen, Kitzbuehel and the World Championships coming up,” said Weibrecht. “But I’ve got a long career ahead of me and right now it’s more important to be smart and come back fully prepared for next winter.”
The unplanned time off snow will allow Weibrecht to recover while attending Dartmouth where he’s in his third year of an Earth Science degree. “We have an outstanding medical and sport science team in place that will do everything they can to take care of Andrew,” said Head Coach Sasha Rearick. “He’s an incredibly smart guy and this will give him time to get in some credits at Dartmouth so we can get him back on snow as early as possible.”
Fellow teammate Marco Sullivan suffered a downhill training crash in Bormio and remains sidelined as well. Sullivan is currently home in Squaw Valley undergoing tests.
“Both Andrew and Marco are members of our family,” added Rearick. “But these guys know how to be smart and put in the hard work it takes to come back.
Weibrecht won the bronze medal is super G at the Vancouver Games.
Gepa photo from Val Gardena
About the Author: Hank McKee
