CORTINA d’AMPEZZO, Italy – Lindsey Vonn, at 41, reaffirmed her unwavering spirit and competitive drive following a devastating crash during Sunday’s women’s downhill at the Winter Olympics. The crash, which occurred just seconds into her run, will require multiple surgeries to repair a complex tibia fracture, but Vonn insists she harbors “no regrets” about her return to the sport and her attempt to compete at the highest level.
Vonn clipped a gate early in the course at the Tofane Alpine Skiing Centre, resulting in a hard fall. She was airlifted off the mountain and underwent initial surgery in Treviso, with further procedures anticipated to fully address the injury. Despite the painful outcome, Vonn took to Instagram on Monday evening to express her resilience and gratitude for the opportunity to race.
“Yesterday my Olympic dream did not finish the way I dreamt it would,” Vonn wrote. “It wasn’t a storybook ending or a fairytale, it was just life. I dared to dream and had worked so hard to achieve it. Because in Downhill ski racing the difference between a strategic line and a catastrophic injury can be as small as 5 inches. I was simply 5 inches too tight on my line when my right arm hooked inside of the gate, twisting me and resulted in my crash.”
The crash brings a particularly poignant end to a remarkable comeback story. Vonn initially retired in 2019 due to the cumulative toll of numerous injuries. A partial replacement of her right knee in April 2024 sparked a determined effort to return to competition, and she enjoyed a successful run on the World Cup circuit leading up to the Olympics. She had been on the podium in all five downhill races this season, winning two of them, and leading the downhill season standings.
However, a torn ACL, bone bruising, and meniscus damage sustained in a crash during the final World Cup downhill before the Games presented a significant obstacle. Vonn underwent intensive physical therapy and competed while wearing a brace, successfully completing two training runs and posting the third-fastest time in the second run. Despite the pre-existing injury, she chose to compete.
Vonn was adamant that her previous knee injury played no role in the crash. “My ACL and past injuries had nothing to do with my crash whatsoever,” she stated in her Instagram post. “In downhill ski racing the difference between a strategic line and a catastrophic injury can be as small as five inches.”
The decision to compete while carrying an injury drew scrutiny, but International Olympic Committee sports director Pierre Ducrey defended Vonn’s right to make that choice. “I think it’s clear in the downhill we give athletes opportunities to train to make sure they are able to go down the slope in the way it should be for all the athletes,” Ducrey said. “That happened, she was able to train and made the choice, with the excellent team that she has, to take part, so from that point of view I don’t think we should say that she should or shouldn’t have participated. This decision was really hers and her team’s to take.”
Vonn’s Olympic journey began with a gold medal in the downhill at the 2010 Vancouver Games. She has since become one of the most decorated American skiers in history, but this latest setback marks a difficult chapter in an already injury-plagued career. The 41-year-old was chasing a return to the podium 16 years after her initial Olympic triumph.
Despite the pain and the prospect of multiple surgeries, Vonn’s message remained resolute. “While yesterday did not end the way I had hoped, and despite the intense physical pain it caused, I have no regrets,” she wrote. “Standing in the starting gate yesterday was an incredible feeling that I will never forget. Knowing I stood there having a chance to win was a victory in and of itself. I also knew that racing was a risk. It always was and always will be an incredibly dangerous sport.”
Vonn’s words reflect a broader philosophy about life and the pursuit of dreams. “And similar to ski racing, we take risks in life. We dream. We love. We jump. And sometimes we fall. Sometimes our hearts are broken. Sometimes we don’t achieve the dreams we know we could have. But that is also the beauty of life; You can try. I tried. I dreamt. I jumped.”
The future remains uncertain for Vonn, but her unwavering spirit and determination suggest that this may not be the final chapter in her extraordinary career. For now, she faces a challenging recovery process, but her message of resilience and acceptance resonates far beyond the slopes of Cortina d’Ampezzo.
