Madi Hoffman

Alpine Skier - Born in 2000 from Sydney, NSW

The day after I qualified for my first Olympics, I was lying in bed with a torn ACL. I remember staring at the ceiling, feeling the weight of everything I had worked for slip through my fingers. That surgery was my second major knee reconstruction. A few years later, just over a year before the next Olympics, I would face a third.

Those moments forced me to see my body differently. At first, I was frustrated, even angry, that it could betray me like this. But slowly, I began to see it as a teammate, not an obstacle. I learned to listen to its signals, to treat it with patience instead of punishment. Rehab became my training ground, not just for skiing, but for discipline, resilience, and gratitude.

I still celebrate every milestone, whether it is bending my knee a few more degrees or clicking back into my skis for the first time in months. My injuries have shaped me as much as my achievements, and they have taught me that real strength is showing up for yourself on the hard days, when the finish line feels impossibly far away. And if there is one thing I have learned, it is that you don’t have to face those hard days alone. There are people who will support you and help you find your way back, even when it feels impossible.