Swiss skier Wendy Holdener tests positive at World Cup finale

Zurich – Swiss Olympic medalist and world champion Wendy Holdener is out of the ultimate World Cup alpine ski competitors of the season after a optimistic coronavirus take a look at, her staff mentioned on Thursday, the most recent Swiss skier to be hit by the pandemic.

Holdener, who received gold, silver and bronze medals on the 2018 Winter Olympics in South Korea, examined optimistic together with coach Klaus Mayrhofer.

“Each are doing effectively, they’re in isolation and have undergone a PCR take a look at as a follow-up, the outcomes of which can be obtainable on Friday morning,” the Swiss staff mentioned in an announcement.

No different Swiss staff members examined optimistic on Thursday night, managers mentioned in an announcement.

Holdener and Mayrhofer had been within the mountain area across the city of Lenzerheide within the Swiss Alps for the ultimate World Cup races of the 2020-21 season that run by means of Sunday.

Heavy snowfall led to the cancellation of the downhill and tremendous large slalom occasions earlier within the week.

That left the large slalom and slalom race, the place Holdener had been thought-about a contender in opposition to favourites together with Slovakia’s Petra Vlhova and American Mikaela Shiffrin in a self-discipline wherein she was runner-up within the 2017 World Championships.

Holdener received the mixed World Championship race in 2017 and 2019 and is ranked fifth this yr in World Cup slalom.

Swiss coronavirus instances are on the rise once more, pushed by variants. The nation recorded 1,750 new infections on Thursday and 23 deaths.

Switzerland’s ski staff members have been sidelined by COVID-19 already this season, with three — Loic Meillard, Justin Murisier and Marco Odermatt — testing optimistic in November.