Lindsey Vonn’s Olympic dream came to a crashing halt Sunday in Cortina, and potentially her storied career as well. The American alpine skier suffered a significant crash during the downhill competition. While currently in stable condition, she faces multiple surgeries – both Sunday afternoon and Monday morning – according to updates she shared on social media less than a day and a half after the incident.
“Yesterday didn’t end my Olympic dream how I imagined. It wasn’t a fairytale ending, it wasn’t a storybook – that’s life,” Vonn stated. She added that dreaming massive, especially in a sport like this, inherently carries risk.
“The difference between a well-chosen arc and a catastrophic injury can be as little as five inches (12 centimeters). I simply took the arc too tightly, my right arm got caught in the gate, which twisted me, and that led to the crash.” She emphasized that the accident wasn’t related to her previous injuries or the anterior cruciate ligament tear she sustained just over a week before the Olympics.
Vonn reported a compound fracture of her tibia, while her father previously mentioned a femur fracture. Reports in the press also indicated a fractured right fibula. “Yesterday didn’t end how I hoped, and the pain is strong, but I have no regrets. Just standing at the starting gate, knowing I had a chance to win, was a victory in itself,” she said.
In her post, Vonn drew a parallel between downhill skiing and life: “We risk, we dream, we love, we jump – and sometimes we fall.” She declared that not every dream comes true, even when we know we were capable of achieving it, but the attempt itself is what gives life meaning.
“I tried. I dreamed. I jumped,” she wrote, adding that the only true failure is not daring to dream at all. She concluded her message by expressing faith in those who believed in her and hoping her career has demonstrated the value of taking risks in all areas of life, even when the possibility of falling exists.
Father Believes This Was Vonn’s Last Race
While Vonn’s words don’t explicitly state that Sunday’s race was the final competition of her professional career, her father previously stated he doesn’t want her to return to professional competition.
“She’s 41, and This represents the end of her career. She won’t be racing anymore – as long as I have anything to say about it,” Alan Kildow told the Associated Press.
He didn’t comment on the specifics of the injury, but spoke about how Vonn is coping with the situation, stating she is aware of her condition, mentally strong, and reacting better than he expected. The family spent the night at the hospital, providing support.
He noted that she is receiving the best possible care at the hospital, with a leading physician from the U.S. Olympic Committee and the ski team involved in preparing for the surgeries and rehabilitation.
Ski Federation President Calls Crash Exceptionally Unlucky
Although Vonn emphasized the accident wasn’t due to her previous ACL tear, the question of who should decide whether an injured elite athlete can compete resurfaced. But, the International Ski Federation president believes this shouldn’t be a point of contention, stating the athlete must be responsible for making that final decision. The decision shouldn’t be influenced by prohibition or coercion.
“I firmly believe that the individual has to decide what condition they are in. They certainly know their injuries better than anyone else,” Johan Eliasch said Monday.
Regarding the circumstances of the crash, he said, “This was an extremely unlucky incident, one in a thousand. She got too close to the gate, touched it in the air, got caught, and that rotated her body.”
Breezy Johnson won the women’s downhill race, finishing ahead of Germany’s Emma Aicher and Italy’s Sofia Goggia.
Despite the devastating end to her Olympic run, Vonn’s career remains exceptional: an Olympic champion, two-time world champion, four-time overall World Cup winner, and the owner of 84 race victories.
