The 26-year-old, who won her first world title at the World Championships in St Moritz earlier this year, said she was "sad and angry" after scans revealed she had sustained a torn anterior cruciate ligament.

Štuhec, last season's overall Downhill World Cup champion, is due to undergo surgery on Wednesday (October 25).

It is expected that more details about her rehabilitation and condition will be revealed after she has the operation.

The injury is likely to keep her out of February's Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang, where the Slovenian would have been among the contenders for the downhill gold medal.

"Unfortunately this was one of my last starts for a few months," Štuhec said on Twitter.

"Sad and angry at the moment, but motivated to get back."

Štuhec's spokesman confirmed the injury in a statement to Reuters and said it would keep her out of action for "a large part or maybe the whole World Cup season, including the Winter Olympic Games in South Korea".

The Slovenian skier, who also finished second in the overall World Cup standings in the 2016 to 2017 campaign, is now facing a race against time in order to be fit for Pyeongchang 2018.

The Games in the South Korean resort are scheduled to run from February 9 to 25.

The Alpine Skiing World Cup season begins with the opening event of the season, a giant slalom competition, in Sölden in Austria. this weekend.

The event starts on Saturday (October 28) and concludes on Sunday (October 29).