Ted Ligety's injury-riddled World Cup season is mercifully over.
The 31-year-old two-time Olympic gold medalist from Park City announced on his Facebook and Twitter accounts on Wednesday that he suffered a torn ACL during a giant slalom training run in Oberjoch, Germany. According to Kyle Wilkens, U.S. Ski Team medical director, Ligety will return stateside for further medical evaluation.
In his social media post, Ligety said, "We all know ski racing is a dangerous sport but I always thought I could avoid a season ender."
Ligety began the 2015-16 World Cup season was with a bang, winning a gold medal in the giant slalom in Soelden, Austria, on Oct. 25. But a training injury in early November resulted in three herniated discs in his back, keeping him off the slopes competitively for an entire month. Later came a hip muscle tear. After rigorous physical therapy treatments as well as injections in his back to quell the pain, Ligety returned to earn a silver medal in the super-G at Beaver Creek, Colo., the first week of December.
Forced to try and catch up with the remainder of the pack, Ligety couldn't regain the form he entered the season with in Soelden. He failed to finish in seven races and did not qualify in another two.
In a cruel twist of irony, Ligety spoke to The Tribune Sunday from Germany regarding the testing season he's experienced as well as his back injury.
"It's part of the deal," he said. "I would say acute injuries where you blow out your knee or something are bad because you're out for the season, but at least that's like a solvable problem. You have a goal in getting back. When it's chronic and it just always lingers, that's tough."
Ligety's season-ending injury is the latest in a slew of major ones to befall the sports most notable athletes. Mikaela Shiffrin, who won gold in women's slalom at the 2014 Olympic Games in Sochi, Russia, suffered a season-ending knee injury in a crash in December in Sweden.
Four-time Olympic medalist Julia Mancuso underwent season-ending hip surgery in early November.
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Twitter: @chriskamrani
United States' Ted Ligety reacts after finishing his run during the men's World Cup super-G ski race Saturday, Dec. 5, 2015, in Beaver Creek, Colo. (AP Photo/Brennan Linsley)
First place finisher Austria's Marcel Hirscher, center, celebrates on the podium with second place finisher United States' Ted Ligety, left, and third place finisher United States' Andrew Weibrecht at the men's World Cup super-G ski race Saturday, Dec. 5, 2015, in Beaver Creek, Colo. (AP Photo/Nathan Bilow)
First place finisher Austria's Marcel Hirscher, center, drinks champagne on the podium with second place finisher United States' Ted Ligety, left, and third place finisher United States' Andrew Weibrecht at the men's World Cup super-G ski race Saturday, Dec. 5, 2015, in Beaver Creek, Colo. (AP Photo/Brennan Linsley)
Ted Ligety, of the United States, speeds down the course during the first run of an alpine ski, men's World Cup giant slalom, in Alta Badia, Italy, Sunday, Dec. 20, 2015. (AP Photo/Marco Trovati)
Ted Ligety of the United States jumps during the downhill portion of the men's alpine skiing combined World Cup at the Lauberhorn, in Wengen, Switzerland, Friday, Jan. 15, 2016. (Jean-Christophe Bott/Keystone via AP)
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