After suffering a broken left ankle in August, Marcel Hirscher—who has been the top Alpine skier in the world for the past six years—is expected to make his racing comeback on Sunday.
According to Austrian media, Hirscher will start the season’s opening World Cup race, a slalom in Levi, Finland. He said on Facebook that Friday he was flying to Levi.
According to broadcaster ORF, the Austrian took the decision after only five days of slalom training after recovering from a training injury on August 17 that did not require surgery.
Prior to his initial injury in December, it was believed that Hirscher might have been out (see the video here). The World Cup program consists mostly of speed races—a discipline Hirscher is not particularly skilled in—until December 9.
While still injured, Hirscher was fortunate that the customary season-opening race, a massive slalom in Soelden, Austria, on the final Sunday of October, was called off due to bad weather.
This season, Hirscher aims to become the first Alpine skier to win seven World Cup overall titles and win his first gold medal at the Olympics.
Hirscher has triumphed twice in Levi, a traditional home for reindeer winners.