Ski racing comes with its fair share of injuries, but then some get more than their fair share—meet Storm Klomhaus. At just 26 years of age, the U.S. ski racer has suffered four ACL tears, as well as a broken ankle.
Klomhaus made her FIS debut at the Nor-Am Cup in December 2014 but suffered her first ACL injury while still in her sophomore year. During the 2017-18 season, Klomhaus sustained an ACL injury that got infected and ultimately required additional surgery. She came back stronger in the 2019-20 season, winning two races at the Australia New Zealand Cup (ANC) during the Northern Hemisphere summer, earning her first starting slot at a World Cup at the Giant Slalom in Sölden, Austria, in October 2019. She claimed her first Nor-Am podium at Nakiska and her first Nor-Am victory at Whiteface Mountain.
In October 2021, Klomhaus fell while in Sölden, Austria, and tore her left ACL again. She required a bone graft and additional surgery and was out for the entire 2021-22 season. She worked hard on coming back to competitions, but tore her left ACL again and then tore her right ACL during training in Beaver Creek, Colorado, in January 2024. Klomhaus was ready to return to ski racing for the 2023-24 season but broke her ankle at the training camp in Saas-Fee, Switzerland, in October 2024.
Others would have thrown in the towel after many setbacks, but not Storm Klomhaus. The Denver University graduate kept working relentlessly on her comeback to ski racing. After more than four years—her last race had been the U.S. Nationals in Aspen, Colorado, in the spring of 2021–she has finally competed in a FIS race again, this time at the South American Cup in Ushuaia, Argentina, where she placed fourth.
“I crossed the finish line for the first time in 1581 days! Had some fast runs, forgot how to jump (accepting lessons), and found out you can’t hike in slalom anymore? More to come,” Storm Klomhaus wrote on Instagram.
Always by her side has been River Radamus, whom she has been dating since 2016. The pair met at high school at the U.S. Ski Team Academy in Utah, where Klomhaus had moved to from her native Colorado.
Radamus had been training in Ushuaia as well and was able to support his girlfriend in person during this milestone. He then followed the tech team to New Zealand, which has been training at Roundhill in the second half of August. Radamus is an all-rounder who competes in both tech and speed events.
Klomhaus will now have to earn a starting spot for a World Cup race again by earning sufficient FIS points at either the Nor-Am or European Cup. Watching her develop her full potential free from injuries will be exciting. While 26 is not young to start from scratch again, Lindsey Vonn’s comeback last season has shown that even at age 40, ski racers can be competitive way past their 20s and 30s.
