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Belle Brockhoff Retires Weeks Before Olympics on Medical Advice

Specialists warned that another crash could cause irreversible spinal damage.

Overview

  • The three-time Olympian ended her snowboard cross career three weeks out from Milan–Cortina after months of rehabilitation.
  • She fractured her L1 vertebra in a 2025 World Cup crash in Georgia and later had surgery in Athens with six pins and two rods inserted.
  • She was also rehabbing a complicated compound wrist fracture that required plates.
  • After consulting about 10 specialists and researching protective options such as airbag systems, she concluded the risk outweighed any medal chance.
  • Her career featured 17 World Cup podiums, a 2021 mixed team world title with Jarryd Hughes, and the first World Cup gold by an Australian woman, and she plans to keep riding and mentor younger athletes.