UPDATE: 01/15/26 at 12:26 pm ET: Team USA Snowboarder Chloe Kim says he is “good to go” for the 2026 Winter Olympics despite suffering a torn labrum earlier this month.
Kim, 25, updated fans in a video via Instagram on Tuesday, January 13, where he revealed his diagnosis.
“The bad news is I tore my labrum,” he said. “I’m not surprised by that, but it’s official. The good news… I guess there’s two different ways to do it and the way I did it is less severe than the other way, so I’m really happy.”
Kim continued: “Obviously, I’m very disappointed that I won’t be able to snowboard until just before the Olympics, which will be difficult. I didn’t get as many reps as I would have liked, but that’s okay.”
But the lack of representatives won’t keep her out of the Milano Cortina games, as women’s snowboarding begins on February 8.
“I’m very grateful that I will be fine to go to the Olympics,” Kim said. “I can wear this really sexy shoulder, which I should be wearing right now. It’s really uncomfortable.”
Original story below
Team USA snowboarding Chloe Kim has won the last two Olympic gold medals in women’s halfpipe snowboarding, but her three-peat hopes are in jeopardy, according to a video she posted via Instagram.
“I hate having to do this video,” an emotional Kim, 25, told her followers on Thursday, January 8. “But I felt it was necessary, so here we go. I’ve been here for a couple of days. I’m currently in Switzerland and on my second day of training I had the dumbest fall.”
Her video then cut to footage of Kim on the halfpipe, erasing herself as she neared the top of the ramp before sliding down.
“That eventually caused me to dislocate my shoulder,” he revealed. “I don’t think I have a lot of clarity right now because I haven’t had an MRI yet, but that’s scheduled for tomorrow.”
Kim said when the MRI is done, he will have a better idea of his recovery timeline. But with the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan and Cortina d’Ampezzo, Italy, just a month away, their status for the sport’s biggest stage is now in doubt.
“I’m not in that much pain,” he continued. “Obviously, I don’t want it to keep coming up, which it has. So yeah, I’m just trying to stay very optimistic.”
She also assured fans that she is ready to resume training as soon as she is medically able.
“I feel really good about where my snowboarding is at right now, so I know that the moment I get cleared and I’m about to go, I should be fine,” Kim said. “I just hope this doesn’t take too long.”
UPDATE, 12/1/24 at 5:21 PM ET: Hours after being pulled from the course, Mikaela Shiffrin shared an update on her health. “Hey guys, it’s not too much to worry about right now. I just can’t move. I have a pretty good abrasion and something stuck under my fingers,” Shiffrin said via Instagram on (…)
She concluded, “But I’m going to have a cold next time, so if you have any thoughts on how I should kill all this time I have, let me know.”
In the caption of her video, Kim shed more light on her emotions as the disappointment of her setback is still raw.
“Trying to stay positive in these difficult times,” she wrote. “I’ve been through so many emotional waves I literally have a migraine. All I can do is rest/do everything in my power to get back asap. Thanks everyone for supporting me on this wild ride! I’ll keep you posted 🙂 ps I think I’m getting old.”
As news of Kim’s injury spread, other Olympians began sharing their support in their comments.
“Hey Chloe, if you see this, you know it ain’t over till it’s over! 👊🏻,” said the British Olympic cyclist. Charlotte Worthington he wrote “I dislocated my shoulder 6 weeks before the Tokyo Olympics, I thought my dream was over, but it was a blessing in disguise… after a tough rehab it forced me to focus on the tricks I really needed to score, I ended up winning. Hope this helps 🩷🙂↕️, and thanks for being an inspiration” 🙂↕️
german skier Sabrina Cakmakli added: “noooo so sorry to hear ❤️🩹 get well soon queen! I wish you the fastest recovery ✨.”
snowboarder Louie Vitowho has represented the US and Italy at the Olympics, wrote: “Rest. You’ll be fine. A little aches and pains, but nothing you haven’t been through before.”