Yarnold has knee operation for rare condition

Lizzy Yarnold, Great Britain’s most decorated Winter Olympian, won her second skeleton gold medal while facing knee surgery for a rare genetic condition.

The 29-year-old was diagnosed with pigmented villonodular synovitis (PVNS), which is characterised by inflammation and a non-cancerous mass or tumour in the lining of the joint, last November, British Skeleton and Bobsleigh said.

Yarnold competed in Pyeongchang, overcoming a chest infection and dizzy spells to win a second successive skeleton gold medal and become the first Briton to defend an Winter Olympics title, before undergoing an operation earlier this month.

She is now recovering at

“Operation went well and I am pleased to have it out of the way”

home and using crutches, with the intention of returning to training next month.

She said: “The operation went well which is great and I am pleased to have got it out of the way.

“I’d always had tightness problems with my left quad and last summer it swelled up unusually.

“I’m grateful the medical team started investigating and found out about the PVNS.

“It was another health distraction for me but I can’t thank the team enough who monitored everything and operated on me.”

British Skeleton performance director Andi Schmid added: “Lizzy is recovering well from her operation and we are looking forward to seeing her back fit to train in a few weeks’ time.

“Lizzy faced a number of challenges on the road to her second Olympic gold medal and this is another example of her mental and physical strength in overcoming what could undoubtedly have been a distraction for her.”