Norwegian ski jumper Thea Bjørseth has suffered a serious knee and arm injury, ruling her out of the upcoming Nordic Ski World Championships in Trondheim, Norway, which begin on Wednesday, February 26. The 21-year-old, a former Junior World Champion, sustained the injuries during her final jump at the World Cup in Ljubno, Slovenia. She had just set a new hill record of 97 meters (318 feet) and score 129.7pts on her first jump and backed it up with a great second jump with 94.5 meters (310 feet), when she fell. Bjørseth has been enjoying something of a breakthrough season on the World Cup circuit, which has seen her achieve the first top-three World Cup results of her career. Despite her crash, the Norwegian still placed third.
In a social media post, Bjørseth revealed that she tore her ACL, PCL, and MCL in the fall while also dislocating her elbow and suffering additional arm injuries. “I managed to get in a position that gave me possibilities to achieve what I’ve worked for long,” she wrote. “It’s just a lot of emotions and a lot to process—the whole situation just sucks.”
The injury is a significant setback, particularly with the World Championships taking place on home soil. Bjørseth had been poised to compete at the highest level, but now faces a long road to recovery. “I don’t know when I will be back, but I have understood it will take time,” she wrote. “But I’m gonna do everything I can to come back strong.”
The ski jumping community has rallied around her, with fans and fellow athletes sending messages of support. “Thank you for all the kind messages I’ve got the last couple of days, it means a lot,” Bjørseth added. The timing of her return to competition remains uncertain, but her determination to overcome this setback is clear.
Ski jumping is a relatively safe winter sport, but like all winter sports, carries certain unique injury risks. According to statistics from a 2006-2008 study by the International Ski and Snowboard Federation (FIS), the percentage of elite ski jumpers injured is between 15-35% less than that of alpine skiers and snowboarders. Most injuries in ski jumpers come from overuse but naturally also from accidents. Falls after a jump can result in serious knee ligament injuries, concussions, and fractures, often requiring long recovery periods, while overuse injuries, such as tibial medial stress syndrome and jumper’s knee, frequently develop from the repetitive impact of dry-land training.
