What happened to Marcel Hirscher in Austria during team training? All about the former Olympic gold medalist's withdrawal from the 2024-25 season

During a Giant Slalom team training in Austria, skier Marcel Hirscher suffered a tear in his anterior cruciate ligament. Owing to this, the 35-year-old had to undergo surgery in Graz under Dr Jurgen Mundl and Dr. Mark Passi this week. This surgery will keep him off the slopes for the remainder of the 2024-25 skiing season.

As per reports, Hirscher suffered a slip during training which led to this season-ending injury. The Salzburg native returned to the sport earlier this year in October after a hiatus of five years. His last professional race before this year was back in March 2019 during the FIS Ski World Cup where he clinched 14th position in the Slalom event.

In a press release, Hirscher expressed his disappointment with the news and also mentioned the hard work he had put into the training sessions. He added that it would be difficult for him to watch all these races throughout the season after this injury. Hirscher said (via NBC Sports),

"Of course it’s a tough cut after eight months of a heartfelt project and a huge pity, because the whole team, including me, we all had other plans for this winter. It will certainly be hard to watch the races."

Hirscher also took to his Instagram handle to announce this news. He wrote,

"Last run of the season. What remains is the love for skiing. Thanks to all of you for your support"

In the 2024-25 season so far, Marcel Hirscher has participated in two Slalom and one Giant Slalom race. His best finish came in the GS where he finished 23rd in Soelden and bagged 16.85 points. For his two slalom events, Hirscher couldn't qualify for his second race in Levi and failed to finish the race in Gurgl.

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Marcel Hirscher sheds light on his ACL injury

Hirscher competing for his team Netherlands in a red and white skiing suit during a slalom event in Levi, Finland (Image via: Getty Images)

Marcel Hirscher recently opened up about his cruciate ligament injury that is set to keep him away from the sport this season.

Hirscher stated that this was his first-hand experience with an ACL injury in his long career. He also mentioned that the eight months of preparation have been "intense" and enjoyable for him. He said (via Van Deer-Red Bull Sports.com),

"For the first time, I am experiencing the painful issue of cruciate ligaments first-hand which so many have already had to go through. What remains is that these eight months were intense and I had a lot of fun."

Marcel Hirscher is one of the most decorated alpine skiers in the circuit with 67 FIS Ski World Cup victories and 138 podium finishes.