Whistler's Julia Murray has not changed her plans to race ski cross for Canada in the Winter Olympics, despite undergoing orthoscopic surgery on Tuesday to repair damage to her ACL and MCL ligaments and the meniscus in her left knee.
Murray injured the knee almost two weeks ago in training for the Lake Placid World Cup, the last qualifying event on the calendar. Murray had already qualified for the team with two podium appearances this year and two fourth place finishes.
She attempted to rehabilitate the injury without surgery, but this week made the decision to go through with the procedure in order to have a full range of motion. She is now in physio twice a day heading into the Games and will decide on Feb. 18 if her knee is strong enough to race. If not, an alternate for the team, Squamish's Aleisha Cline, would take her place.
Murray, 21, is currently ranked fourth in the World Cup ski cross standings. Teammates Ashleigh McIvor and Kelsey Serwa are ranked second and third, while Ophelie David of France is once again on top of the leader board.
Knee injuries are common in ski cross, where athletes sometimes land flat or uphill after taking a jump. As well, crashes are common when athletes cross skis or bump into one another on course.
Some of Canada's top ski and snowboard cross racers have battled knee injuries in the past. Ashleigh McIvor has had several knee surgeries in recent years, as has snowboardcross star Maëlle Ricker. On the men's ski cross team, Brady Leman missed most of last season with a knee injury.
