Elevate your local knowledge

Sign up for the iNFOnews newsletter today!

Select Region

Selecting your primary region ensures you get the stories that matter to you first.

Federica Brignone motivated by flag bearer role in bid to be fit for Olympics

Federica Brignone motivated by flag bearer role in bid to be fit for Olympics | iNFOnews.ca
Italy's Federica Brignone delivers her speech during the hand over ceremony of the Italian flag by the Italian President Sergio Mattarella for the Milan-Cortina Winter Olympic games, at the Quirinale Presidential palace, in Rome, Monday, Dec. 22, 2025. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)

ROME (AP) — The mere fact Federica Brignone accepted being named as one of Italy’s four flag bearers for the Milan Cortina Winter Olympics is a significant step in her return from severe injury.

“If I wasn’t optimistic, I wouldn’t be here today and I wouldn’t have put my skis back on after eight months,” Brignone said after being handed the flag by Italy President Sergio Mattarella on Monday.

Brignone, the defending overall World Cup skiing champion, broke multiple bones in her left leg in April.

After two surgeries and months of rehab, she returned to the snow last month and is now ready to ramp up her training to racing pace.

“Over the last two weeks I’ve made a big leap forward. I’ve been able to use my racing materials,” she said. “But I still haven’t tested myself on race-worthy snow or on a real race course. Those are the next steps.”

Brignone will start gate training next.

“I was going to start yesterday but it was too foggy,” she said. “I’ve been really sick with a fever for a week, and now I’m here (in Rome), so I haven’t been able to train the way I wanted to.”

The 35-year-old Brignone has won a silver and two bronzes at the Olympics and these would be her fifth Games if she returns in time. At 34 last season, she became the oldest women’s winner in World Cup history — a record recently broken by 41-year-old Lindsey Vonn.

Brignone has limited training to her home Valle d’Aosta region but plans to be on her skis non-stop through the holidays.

“I’ve been staying at home because, with my leg, we don’t have the certainty that everything goes right all of the time,” she said. “That’s why I’m still making trips to Turin (for physical therapy).”

So, will Brignone be able to enter a World Cup race or two before the Olympics?

“That would be great but I don’t even know if I can do a giant slalom yet,” she said. “So let’s take it step by step … then when the time is right, I’ll rejoin the team.”

___

AP Olympics: https://apnews.com/hub/milan-cortina-2026-winter-olympics

Federica Brignone motivated by flag bearer role in bid to be fit for Olympics | iNFOnews.ca
From left, Italian athletes Federica Brignone, Amos Mosaner, Federico Pellegrino, Arianna Fontana, Italian President Sergio Mattarella, Rene’ de Silvestro, right, and Chiara Mazzel, second from right, pose for a group photo, during the hand over ceremony of the Italian flag for the Milan-Cortina Winter Olympic games, at the Quirinale Presidential palace, in Rome, Monday, Dec. 22, 2025. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
Federica Brignone motivated by flag bearer role in bid to be fit for Olympics | iNFOnews.ca
FILE – Italy’s Federica Brignone skis during a women’s giant slalom run at the World Cup Finals, March 25, 2025, in Sun Valley, Idaho. (AP Photo/Robert F. Bukaty, File)
Federica Brignone motivated by flag bearer role in bid to be fit for Olympics | iNFOnews.ca
FILE – Italy’s Federica Brignone smiles on the podium after winning the women’s World Cup overall at the World Cup Finals, March 27, 2025, in Sun Valley, Idaho. (AP Photo/John Locher, File)

News from © The Associated Press, . All rights reserved.
This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

The Associated Press

Andrew Dampf

The Associated Press is an independent global news organization dedicated to factual reporting. Founded in 1846, AP today remains the most trusted source of fast, accurate, unbiased news in all formats and the essential provider of the technology and services vital to the news business. More than half the world’s population sees AP journalism every day.

Related Articles