Zoe Gillings returns to training after Olympics injury

Gillings finished 8th at the winter Olympics in Vancouver

Isle of Man snowboarder Zoe Gillings has returned to full training after injuring her left knee at the Winter Olympics in February.

She suffered the injury in the semi-finals and missed out on the final by just one place.

The 25-year-old said: "My knee is better, I'm back in the gym and I cant wait to compete again."

Gillings's first race of the 2010/11 season will be in Telluride, USA, on the 15 December.

Despite her injury the Manx athlete finished eighth in the snowboard cross event in Vancouver.

She returned to full training on Monday at the English Institute of Sport (EIS) following six weeks of rehabilitation and key hole surgery on her damaged knee.

"I ended up damaging the cartilage and stretching the ligament in my knee," she said.

"I had to have surgery but at least I injured this during the Olympics and not the competition before. The operation went really well and my knee is nearly back to normal.

"Looking back, I'm disappointed with my eighth place finish, but I did all I could on the day, so I have no regrets."