By ,
Published March 17, 2017
GENEVA (AP) Olympic halfpipe champion Iouri Podladtchikov will have surgery after sustaining a serious knee injury at the snowboard world championships.
The Swiss ski federation says Podladtchikov tore the ACL in his right knee during his silver medal-winning performance on Saturday in Sierra Nevada, Spain.
The 28-year-old snowboarder, known as I-Pod, will have the operation on Thursday in St. Moritz.
The Swiss team says Podladtchikov should return in time to defend his Olympic title next year in Pyeongchang, South Korea.
The Russia-born Podladtchikov took gold at the 2014 Sochi Olympics when two-time defending champion Shaun White of the United States was fourth.
https://www.foxnews.com/sports/olympic-halfpipe-champion-i-pod-to-have-knee-surgery