Norwegian ski great Aksel Lund Svindal could miss the world championships after tearing his Achilles tendon while playing football with his friends.
The five-time world champion and 2010 Olympic super-G gold medallist suffered the freak injury after finishing a training session with his team at Soelden in Austria on Saturday.
He underwent surgery on Sunday and could be ruled out of the world championships in the United States in February where he would have been defending his downhill title.
"Shit happens, and that's exactly what happened," wrote the two-time overall World Cup winner on his Facebook page.
"Suddenly I felt something snap in my leg and I knew right away that something was wrong. Achilles."
Svindal was then taken to hospital in Innsbruck, 100 kilometres away, for surgery.
The World Cup season gets underway next weekend at Soelden but Svindal is expected to be ruled out for up to four months.
"He will probably not get back on his skis before three or four months," said Norway team doctor Jacob Strauss.
Source: AFP