In this photo provided by RIA Novosti Kremlin, Russian President Vladimir Putin, center, speaks to skier Maria Komissarova in a hospital in Krasnaya Polyana, Russia, on Saturday, Feb. 15, 2014. The 23-year-old Russian ski cross racer fractured her spine during a training session Saturday and underwent a 6 1/2 hour surgery. AP
MUNICH— Olympic skicross racer Maria Komissarova of Russia remains confident of walking again despite having no feeling in her legs.
Komissarova writes on Instagram, “I don’t feel my body below my navel. But I am strong and I know that I’ll be able to stand on my legs again some day.”
The 23-year-old Komissarova remains in a Munich rehabilitation center after breaking her spine at the Sochi Winter Games. She will remain there for at least three months, a spokesman for the Russian freestyle ski federation told the Interfax news agency.
Komissarova crashed during a training run on Feb. 15, fracturing the 12th dorsal vertebrae in her lower-middle back. She underwent emergency surgery lasting 6 ½ hours at Krasnaya Polyana, Russia, a day before being airlifted to Germany for further treatment.
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