American skiing legend Lindsey Vonn’s Olympic comeback ended in heartbreak overnight after the 41-year-old crashed during the women’s downhill.
Vonn was just 13 seconds into her run at the Milano Cortina Winter Olympics when she clipped a gate mid-jump and tumbled down the course.
She lay on the snow before being airlifted from the slopes of Cortina d’Ampezzo.
Vonn was skiing on a ruptured ACL.
Here’s what you need to know.
Context
Since making her Olympic debut in 2002, Vonn has become one of the world’s most decorated athletes in women’s alpine skiing.
In 2010, she became the first American to win Olympic gold in the women’s downhill. Vonn also has two Olympic bronze medals and has won a staggering 84 World Cup races throughout her career.
She is one of only six women to have won races in all five disciplines of alpine skiing (downhill, super-G, giant slalom, slalom, and super combined).
Vonn retired in February 2019, but in 2024 – months after a partial knee replacement surgery – she announced a comeback ahead of the 2026 Winter Olympics.
Just nine days before the event, she ruptured her ACL in her left knee.
Despite her injury, the five-time Olympian was determined to compete and shared videos of intense rehab sessions in the lead-up.
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Vonn is no stranger to competing in pain. In 2019, she won a bronze medal at the world championships with a torn LCL and several fractures in her leg.
Race
While some medical experts expressed concerns about the risk of further injury, Vonn was cleared to compete in the Games after consultation with doctors and her team.
She showed strong form in training runs and posted the third-fastest time down the course on Saturday, the day before the final.
That night, she wrote on Instagram: “I will race tomorrow in my final Olympic Downhill and while I can’t guarantee a good result, I can guarantee I will give it everything I have.”
Starting 13th in a field of 36, disaster struck just 13 seconds into her run when Vonn’s right ski pole clipped a gate at the crest of a jump.
Vonn was sent spinning and tumbling down the course before she landed on her back with her skis crisscrossed.
The race was halted for more than 10 minutes as medical staff rushed to help. Vonn was eventually airlifted to hospital from the mountain.
Condition
Vonn was taken to hospital in Treviso, where she underwent surgery to stabilise a fracture in her left leg.
The U.S. Ski & Snowboard Team confirmed she is now stable, “and in good hands with a team of American and Italian physicians.“
Vonn’s teammate Breezy Johnson, who went on to win gold in the event, said: “My heart goes out to her. I hope it's not as bad as it looked.”
