After almost two years of suffering, Aleksander Kilde celebrates his comeback at the Super-G in Copper Mountain. 24th place is more than just a sign of life for the 33-year-old Norwegian.
27.11.2025, 22:03
27.11.2025, 22:05
SDA
Aleksander Kilde crosses the finish line in 22nd place, 1.25 seconds behind the victorious Marco Odermatt. In the finish area at Copper Mountain, Mikaela Shiffrin holds her hands to her face and fights back tears. The scenes that unfolded on Thursday at the start of the speed season in North America were extraordinary. They reflect a period of suffering that began in January 2024.
Back then, Aleksander Kilde crashed heavily in the finish S at the Lauberhorn downhill in Wengen and suffered such serious injuries that his career was on the line. A gaping laceration on his lower right leg and a complex injury to his left shoulder put him out of action for a long time. During his rehabilitation, an infection in his shoulder set him back a long way. He never gave up his belief in a return, and step by step, weight by weight, he worked on his comeback.
Now, 683 days after his momentous crash in Wengen, the time had come. He returned to the race track to huge cheers from the spectators and the eyes of his fiancée Mikaela Shiffrin. "It was amazing. It was so beautiful to ski, a dream," he told SRF in the finish area. He had been nervous all week. "Now I have a lot of emotions."
Shiffrin was also emotionally moved: "It was very special that I was able to be there for his comeback. I'm very proud of him," said the best female skier in history, who is also competing in Copper Mountain on Saturday and Sunday.
Shiffrin was the rock in the surf for him, said Kilde. "She has supported me from day one. Not only personally, but also as an athlete. I'm glad that I can share so much with her. The support I've gotten from her has been insane. I love her."
