Swiss ski legend Lara Gut-Behrami retires at 35 after knee injury ends Olympic dream

Career-ending injury and retirement decision

Lara Gut-Behrami announced her retirement on Wednesday evening, ending speculation about a possible comeback after a severe training crash in November 2025 at Copper Mountain, USA. The 35-year-old from Ticino suffered a torn cruciate ligament, a torn medial collateral ligament, and a torn meniscus in her left knee, forcing her to miss the entire 2025/26 season and the Olympic Games in Italy. She had previously announced that the 2025/26 season would be her last, with the Milan-Cortina Olympics as her planned farewell.

Reasons for stepping away

Gut-Behrami explained her decision in a lengthy open letter published by RSI, the Italian-language public broadcaster. She emphasized that after nearly 20 years of elite sport, despite crashes and injuries, she has no recurring pain and wants to keep it that way. She described skiing as something magical and natural that she wants to preserve, saying that forcing her body and mind to endure pain would tarnish the image she carries of what she has done with such passion.

A decorated career

Gut-Behrami won the overall World Cup twice (2015/16 and 2023/24), earned Olympic gold in the Super-G at the 2022 Beijing Games, and is a two-time world champion (2021). She amassed 48 World Cup victories across her 17-year career. Her World Cup debut came on February 2, 2008, in St. Moritz, where as a 16-year-old she crashed just before the finish line, slid across on her back, and still finished third. Her final World Cup race was a giant slalom in Sölden in October 2025, where she also finished third.

Reactions from Swiss-Ski and the public

Hans Flatscher, alpine director at Swiss-Ski and former head women's coach, said the retirement came as a surprise. He noted that Gut-Behrami had been intensively preparing for the new season in recent weeks and had informed him of her decision on Wednesday afternoon. He praised her "gewaltige Karriere" and said her departure leaves a gap both nationally and internationally, calling her a prägende Person who is leaving the ski racing world.

Personal tributes

In a farewell video, Gut-Behrami thanked her family and support team. She thanked her father Pauli for always being there from the first to the last day, her mother Gabriella for accompanying them through the craziest endeavors, and her brother Ian for supporting her even when she could not bear herself. She also thanked her husband Valon Behrami, describing life at his side as extraordinary. Swiss media users echoed the sentiment, with many praising her contribution to Swiss sport and expressing concern about the future of Swiss women's skiing after her departure.