Snowboarding superstar Chloe Kim has delivered a positive update on her fitness, confirming she will be ready to compete at the upcoming Winter Olympics despite suffering a significant shoulder injury in training.
Injury Update: 'Tore My Labrum' But 'Good to Go'
The back-to-back Olympic halfpipe champion, who is aiming for a historic third consecutive gold medal, dislocated her shoulder in what she described as a 'silly' fall during her second day of training last week. After undergoing an MRI scan, the diagnosis was confirmed: a torn labrum.
'The bad news is that I tore my labrum. I'm not surprised by that, but it's official,' Kim stated in a video update on Tuesday. However, she struck an optimistic tone, noting the injury could have been worse. 'The good news is that I just tore my labrum and I guess there are two different ways to do it - and the way that I did it is less severe.'
While the 25-year-old admitted she is 'really disappointed' about being unable to snowboard until just before the Games, impacting her preparation, she firmly stated she will be 'good to go' for the event in Italy this February.
Road to a Historic Third Gold
The injury will force Kim to miss the LAAX Open in Switzerland, an event she loves, as she focuses on recovery. She is currently wearing a shoulder brace she jokingly called 'really sexy' but also 'really uncomfortable'.
Kim, who is in a relationship with Cleveland Browns NFL star Myles Garrett, revealed the extent of the damage after the awkward up-slope fall. 'I am not in that much pain,' she said last week. 'Obviously I just don't want it to keep popping out. So just trying to stay really optimistic. I feel good about where my snowboarding is at right now.'
This setback is the latest challenge for the athlete, who has qualified for her third Olympic Games. 'Every season I am met with a different set of challenges -- so I guess this is going to be the one this year,' she philosophically added.
Potential to Make Olympic History
If Chloe Kim triumphs in the halfpipe at the Milan-Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics, she will secure a place in the record books. Not only would she become the twelfth American Olympian to win three gold medals in a career, but she would also join fellow snowboarder Shaun White as the only Olympians of any nationality to claim three gold medals in a snowboarding discipline.
Kim's talent was evident from a young age. She became the youngest X Games gold medalist at 14 in 2015 and, at 17, was the youngest Olympic halfpipe champion at the 2018 Pyeongchang Games, where she made history by landing back-to-back 1080s. She successfully defended her title at the Beijing 2022 Games.
Despite the disrupted training schedule, Kim's focus remains unwavering. Her journey to a potential third Olympic gold medal continues, with the world watching to see if she can overcome this physical hurdle and make sporting history.
