Alpine skiing-Racing with torn ACL 'doable', Mancuso says of Vonn downhill bid

CORTINA D'AMPEZZO, Italy, Feb 4 : Former Olympic champion Julia Mancuso said racing the Milano Cortina Olympic downhill days after rupturing an anterior cruciate ligament is “definitely doable” as longtime teammate Lindsey Vonn bids to compete against the odds.

Vonn, the 2010 Olympic downhill gold medallist, revealed on Tuesday that she had torn her ACL in a crash at Crans-Montana last Friday, along with bone bruising and meniscal damage.

However, she said her knee felt stable after treatment and hopes to compete in Sunday’s downhill with the aid of a brace.

Fellow American Mancuso, who won silver behind Vonn at Vancouver 2010, and claimed gold in giant slalom at Torino 2006, said the timing of the injury made the challenge unusual even in a sport where athletes have sometimes competed without an ACL.

“Normally it happens in the beginning of the season and they have a lot of time to strength train and test it out,” Mancuso, who at 41 is the same age as Vonn, said on Instagram.

“This is going to be unique because she’s going to be testing it in the training runs and we’re going to be watching it and experiencing it live with her.”

With little time to prepare between the injury and the race, and two training runs scheduled before Sunday, Mancuso said uncertainty would surround Vonn’s condition and the mountain.

“There’s not a lot of time to do any other training, so I think we’ll all be on the edge of our seats for that,” she said, adding that forecast snowfall could make for difficult conditions rather than “the perfect Cortina we’re used to”.

Racing without an ACL while relying on a brace “can be very difficult, but it’s definitely doable, especially with no swelling,” Mancuso said, noting that Vonn had acknowledged she would