Happy Sofia Goggia makes successful comeback in downhill practice: "I was not afraid at all"

Sofia Goggia has passed the test and she's ready to race at the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympic Games.

After skipping the super G on Friday, the reigning Olympic champion took part in the first downhill practice on Saturday (12 February), the first time the Italian skier had participated in an official alpine event since the crash and knee injury she suffered on 23 January in Cortina,

Goggia had solid run, clocking the 12th fastest time on 'The Ice Rock' course, and looked visibly happy, and almost moved to tears, after crossing the finish line:

"I am glad I could ski well today, and I am glad I could be at the start gate because it wasn't guaranteed at all after what occurred in Cortina around 15 days ago," she said.

"I'm really happy to be here, I'm happy to be at the Games, so let's play!"

The 29-year-old talked through the emotional rollercoaster that took her to Beijing:

"Today, luckily, I was pretty much stable, even though yesterday I thought maybe I was going to be very fearful today, instead I was pretty much confident, I had clear in my mind all the things I had to do. So basically I was not afraid at all, I was focused on the things I had to do in my run and I think I made it as the coaches asked me to.

"So it's good, of course it was a really tough period to get here, to recover so fast, this is why my condition is still not that optimal but I have to deal with that, it's not a problem, unless it is in your mind."

Goggia shared how she felt during her practice run: "I was calm at the start, I wanted to test my knee and how it reacted on this track."

She then continued: "It was important to feel I could stand well on my skis and I also could confidently face the turns. I wasn't afraid at all, I'm happy I'm just a