She had to undergo surgery after a fall during a roller ski race at the start of September. Now, the biathlon World Cup overall winner is forced into alternative training after the frightening experience.

“Not quite the September I imagined… Unfortunately, at the first of the three races of the German Championship, I suffered a hand injury in a fall,” Franziska Preuss shared on her Instagram account.

The injury break comes at an unfavorable time, right in the middle of the most crucial preparation period.

Last winter, Preuss won the World Cup overall for the first time and claimed both gold and silver at the World Championships. Now she is chasing her first Olympic gold and has adopted extreme routines at home to be in the best shape of her life come February.

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Alternative training

Preuss says she is back to training, but still cannot train thoroughly as she usually would. Still, she tries to see the positives in the situation.

“Fortunately, everything could be repaired right away, and a week after the surgery, it was possible to start training again,” said Preuss, adding:

“Rarely a harm without a benefit. Now the focus is more on leg strength.”

This weekend, she traveled with the rest of the national team to the Olympic venue in Antholz/Anterselva.

“Rehab is going according to plan so far, and tomorrow, for me, it’s going to the training camp in Antholz, and then hopefully the 2nd will come there again,” said Preuss.

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A post shared by Franziska Preuß (@franzi110394)

Not the only one

Preuss is not the only ski star who has needed hand surgery after falling in a roller ski race.

At the end of August, Jan Thomas Jenssen had to go under the knife after crashing during the warm-up for the sprint at Toppidrettsveka.

The 29-year-old, now starting his first season on the elite national team, got off to a difficult start in his Olympic-season preparations. He, too, has had to train alternatively for several weeks, and it will still be some time before he can use his right hand normally.

Last year, Ingrid Landmark Tandrevold had to train alternatively for large parts of the summer after breaking her hand in a fall during the Lofoten Skyrace in early July.

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