THE CANADIAN PRESS
The frustration Allison Forsyth feels over being forced to miss her second World Cup ski season to recover from a knee injury is compounded by the disappointment of not being able to take her fight against breast cancer to the slopes.
"The last month has been very difficult," Forsyth said in a conference call Thursday night. "I never saw it coming."
Forsyth will miss this season after re-injuring her left knee in training for last month’s opening giant slalom race of the World Cup season in Solden, Austria. She plans to fly to London, Ont., to met with Dr. Bob Littchfield to decide if she will undergo a procedure known as an osteotomy.
"Hopefully getting some surgery done can better my condition," said Forsyth, 29, a Nanaimo, B.C., native who now lives in Calgary. "First and foremost to increase my likelihood of being able to lead an active lifestyle as an adult past ski racing.
"Then I will reconsider, once I have recovered from those surgeries, whether or not I will be coming back to ski racing."
Forsyth had planned to wear a pink ski helmet this season to raise awareness of inflammatory breast cancer, the disease that claimed her mother Marion in April.
"It’s been a roller coaster of emotions," said Forsyth. "Of course it’s very disappointing I can’t come back to ski racing and I don’t have an opportunity to wear that pink helmet that was such a huge part of my campaign."
Forsyth will also miss this weekend’s World Cup women’s slalom and giant slalom races in Panorama, B.C. It would have been her first World Cup race in Canada in 10 years.
Forsyth ripped up her knee training for the downhill race at the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin. Since then she’s undergone two major surgeries.
She missed all last season but was back on the snow this summer and planned to race this year. She was forced to return from Austria a month ago when the knee began to bother her again.
"The injury did not come from any sort of crash or impact of any sort," she said. "I didn’t realize I had injured my knee until I woke up in the morning with severe pain.
"I for sure won’t be able to ski this season again."
Dr. Christopher Irving, Alpine Canada’s medical director, said Forsyth has had the knee examined by several doctors.
"Allison’s knee has not reacted well to the harder snow conditions she was exposed to recently," he said. "There are some degenerative changes in her knee that have flaired up recently."
During an osteotomy a surgeon removes bone from the lower leg near the knee. This tilts the body away from the damaged knee.
Forsyth will become the second member of the women’s team to have an osteotomy. Earlier this year Genevieve Simard had the operation but not before talking with former Detroit Red Wing star Steve Yzerman who had the same procedure done on his knee.
Forsyth said she has spoken with Simard about the operation and what to expect.
Forsyth has five World Cup podium finishes in her career and won the bronze medal in giant slalom at the 2003 world Alpine championships
"For sure it’s a big loss that Allison can’t race this season," said Dusan Grasic, Alpine Canada’s ski team director. "Allison is a team leader on the snow and off the snow.
"With her results in the past she contributed tremendously to the success of the ski team on the women’s side. Not getting her back will have to find some other athletes to step into her shoes which will be really difficult."
Fellow ski team member Kelly VanderBeek said Forsyth was thrilled to be back training this fall.
"It was fun to have her around," said VanderBeek. "She was so excited to be back. It was a real positive energy. She was skiing fast.
"It’s tough, just from a personal side, for every athlete to know that this sport is pretty dangerous."
VanderBeek has no doubts Forsyth will be able to return.
Forsyth still hopes to compete at the Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympics Games.
"My goal is to represent Canada in those Olympic Games," she said. "That being said, I’ve suffered numerous setbacks.
"I look forward to living day by day at this point."