Andrea Ellenberger is retiring from top-class sport. The decisive factor in her decision is the injuries she sustained a year ago, which make it impossible for her to return to the World Cup in the near future.
Andrea Ellenberger suffered a fracture to her lower right leg in a training fall in December 2024. She was unable to recover properly from this injury, quite the opposite in fact. An examination of her left leg revealed that the cruciate ligament was torn and the meniscus damaged.
The fracture of the tibia and fibula required fixation with an intramedullary nail and a plate. These metals will now be surgically removed over the next few weeks and the left knee will be treated at the same time.
With the realization that a comeback would not have been realistic until the season after next at the earliest, sporting goals such as participating in the Olympics in Cortina became a distant prospect. Now the soon-to-be 33-year-old is drawing a line and officially ending her career.
"After 20 years of giving my heart to ski racing, I'm saying goodbye," she announced on Instagram. "Injuries forced me to stop, reflect and accept that not every goal I once set myself could be achieved."
However, she is leaving top-class sport with a lot of gratitude. "For the victories and the defeats. For the moments of doubt and the moments of pure joy. For everything this journey has taught me about resilience, patience and believing in myself ... Especially when the road was hard."
Master's degree in psychology completed
Just two weeks ago, Ellenberger said in an emotional Instagram post that she didn't yet know what the new year would bring, "but I can handle it". It is now clear that she is leaving ski racing behind and embarking on a new path.
Ellenberger, who got married last summer, has completed her master's degree in psychology and is pursuing further studies with a specialization in sports psychology. She also works as a remedial teacher at primary school in Hergiswil. Her best World Cup results are two 11th places in Kronplatz (2019) and Sölden (2020).
