Question marks still exist over whether Bode Miller will be fit enough to take part in the downhill at Val Gardena on December 19th.
The dual Olympic silver medallist was sidelined for the recent World Cup giant slalom event in
Val D'Isere after a swollen ankle prevented him from getting one of his boots on.
Miller picked up the injury when landing on the foot of a team-mate during a game of volleyball and is still unsure of whether it will have recovered sufficiently enough in time for Italy.
He revealed on his blog for Universal Sports: "I'd be surprised if I can get into a boot in time to run the training runs in Italy this week but it's possible.
"It's a pretty bad sprain. Normally it takes a couple weeks to get better. The ski boots are so tight anyway, there's just not a whole lot of extra room in there."
He added that the one positive was that the Val Gardena downhill course was devoid of too many bumps, which may work in his ankle's favour if he races.
Miller is currently ranked in 17th spot as he looks to repeat his overall victory in the 2008 World Cup, but lies sixth in the downhill standings.
Written by Chris Smith
