Haley Batten fractures her hand in Val di Sole and will not start in the XCO

New setback for Haley Batten. The Specialized Factory Racing rider suffered a hand fracture after a fall during the Short Track race held yesterday at the Val di Sole World Cup, which will force her to miss the XCO race scheduled for this Sunday.

Batten breaks her hand in Val di Sole

The severity of the injury has been confirmed by the team through social media: "It breaks our hearts to announce that Haley Batten suffered a hand fracture during yesterday's fall in the XCC and will not be able to start the XCO race. We wish her a speedy and full recovery", read the statement accompanied by an image of the rider in full competition.

Bad luck seems to be following the American rider in this 2025 season. In 2024, despite a concussion that plagued her for much of the year, she managed to complete a brilliant 2024 season culminating in a historic Olympic medal that made her the first woman from her country to step onto the podium in an XCO event. But this year, Batten is being hit by both personal and physical circumstances. She already missed the first two rounds of the World Cup in Brazil to be by her mother's side, who is battling cancer, and now this new setback is once again halting her progression when she seemed to have regained her competitive rhythm.

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The exact severity of this injury has not been specified yet, and the time she will be away from races is unknown, but both the rider's environment and the team hope she can recover as soon as possible, although for now, the most important thing will be to prioritize her health.