Lindsey Vonn’s latest knee injury is forcing her to miss at least one race.
Vonn did not compete in the super-G on Saturday, Jan. 31, one day after injuring her left knee in a high-speed crash. It was the last race before the Milano Cortina Olympics, which open Friday, Feb. 6.
‘Unfortunately, I won’t be able to race today. Wishing all my teammates a great race,’ Vonn wrote in an Instagram post that included a video of her crash.
‘Thank you for all of the love and support I have received,’ she added. ‘Means the world to me.’
She ended by saying, ‘Doing my best right now…’ She added praying hands and fingers crossed emojis.
Fellow American Breezy Johnson finished third in the super-G, her first time on the podium this season and her first-ever top three in that discipline on the World Cup circuit.
Vonn crashed during the final downhill race before the Olympics. In the lead after the first section, she got off balance coming out of a jump and skidded across the snow and into the safety netting at the side of the course in Crans-Montana, Switzerland. She was able to get to her feet, but was clearly favoring her left knee and needed to use her poles to steady herself.
Vonn did a few easy turns before stopping and clutching her knee. She slip-slided down a steep portion of the course before slowly skiing down to the bottom of the hill. She shook her head several times as U.S. teammate Jackie Wiles approached her, then went into a tent for more medical attention.
Vonn was airlifted off the course, common practice in mountain venues, and taken to a hospital for tests. She said on social media several hours later that she still hopes to compete at the Olympics, which begin in less than a week.
The downhill, where Vonn will be a favorite for gold, is Feb. 8. The team combined is Feb. 10 and the super-G is Feb. 12.
‘This is a very difficult outcome one week before the Olympics … but if there’s one thing I know how to do, it’s a comeback,’ Vonn wrote.
‘My Olympic dream is not over,’ she added.
Vonn’s comeback is one of the most amazing stories in sports history, and the 41-year-old is poised to be the biggest star of the Milano Cortina Olympics.
The 2010 Olympic downhill champion retired in 2019 because of the physical toll of her many injuries. When she had a partial replacement of her right knee in April 2024, it was in the hope of being able to live a normal, pain-free life.
But she felt so good during her recovery that she decided to make a comeback, returning to the World Cup circuit in December 2024. Vonn had mixed results last season, though she ended it with a silver medal in the super-G at the World Cup finals in Sun Valley, Idaho.
With a full offseason to train and fine-tune her equipment, however, Vonn has been dominant. She’s won two downhill races, including the season opener, and been on the podium in every downhill race. She also has top-three finishes in two of the first three super-G races.