Lindsey Vonn SkiingThe hyped skiing world championship duel between local hero Maria Riesch and American star Lindsey Vonn is endangered by health scares involving both athletes.
Vonn skipped Wednesday's downhill training because she has not yet recovered from a concussion suffered in a training crash a week ago.
Riesch has come down with a fever and left training after skiing to the first gate only to meet the requirement of having attempted the mandatory training run.
It was unclear on Wednesday whether both skiers will be fit to race in the super-combined on Friday, in which Riesch is the Olympic champion.
The downhill follows on Sunday, with Vonn the world and Olympic champion, and the World Cup leader Riesch a three-time season winner.
Vonn decided to rest (or possibly train elsewhere like on Monday) after having to settle for seventh in the super-G -in which Riesch took bronze.
"During the race it became very clear to me that I am not fully recovered from the head injury/concussion I suffered last week. I still don't have the concentration, agility, and mental quickness to ski the way I am accustomed to," Vonn said on her Facebook page.
"I've decided together with my husband, doctors and coaches to skip (Wednesday's) downhill training run. I will continue to skip training runs and events until I feel normal again. I don't know how long it will take. Head injuries, as I am finding out first hand, are very unpredictable. My condition will be re-evaluated every day and then we will make a decision if and when I can compete or not."
The super-combined and downhill are Vonn's biggest chances to medal at the Garmisch championships while she is not among the favourites in next week's giant slalom and slalom.
Vonn, 26, will have to train Thursday if she wants to be in the supercombined event which consists of a downhill and a slalom run. If she just wants to do the downhill, Saturday will be her last chance.
The American must also take into account the weather forecast which has predicted rain and snow for the weekend, which in turn, could possibly wipe out Saturday training.
Riesch met the training required by skiing to the first gate -then shrugged, slipped into warm clothes and went back to the doctors who diagnosed viral influenza.
"The symptoms indicate a starting viral flu. Intensified medical treatment was started immediately," German team doctor Hannes Scherr said in a statement.
A race absence of Riesch would be a bad blow for the German team which had giant slalom Olympic champion Vikoria Rebensburg missing the super-g with a flu, giant slalom world champion Kathrin Hoelzl battling back problems and speed skier Gina Stechert out for the championships with a fractured thumb from a super-G crash.
