US ski star Lindsey Vonn crashes in Olympic downhill race

Special Series 2026 Milan Cortina Olympics US ski star Lindsey Vonn crashes in Olympic downhill race Updated February 8, AM ET Originally published February 8, 20265:26 AM ET Becky Sullivan United States' Lindsey Vonn during an alpine ski women's downhill race, at the 2026 Winter Olympics, in Cortina d'Ampezzo, Italy, Sunday, Feb. 8, 2026. hide caption CORTINA D'AMPEZZO, Italy — American alpine skiing superstar Lindsey Vonn crashed badly just 13 into today's women's downhill race, one of the most eagerly anticipated events of the 2026 Winter Olympics. This ends her dream of coming back from retirement to win another Olympic medal. Vonn had successfully completed two training runs in the days leading up to the race. But on Sunday, she crashed hard coming off the first jump of the course and had to be airlifted by helicopter off the mountain. The crash was initiated as Vonn passed through the fourth gate of the race. Her right arm caught the gate and sent her off the jump unbalanced, sending her into the air spinning to her right. She landed hard on the snow on her right side, her skis perpendicular to the slope, and tumbled. The shocked grandstand fell into silence as a medical team tended to her for more than 10 Vonn is at The 41-year-old Team USA star, had already had a decorated career when she retired in 2019, was attempting to stage a comeback within a After launching out of retirement straight into the stratosphere of the World Cup downhill standings, she wanted to cap it all off with an Olympic medal barely a week after tearing her ACL. The downhill race began at 11:30 a.m. local time on the Olimpia delle Tofane ski course in Cortina, a classic and beloved stop on the World Cup circuit. Cortina has played host to several significant moments of Vonn's career, including her first ever World Cup podium, and the victory that made her the winningest female skier in World Cup history (a title that now belongs to fellow American Mikaela Shiffrin). That Cortina is hosting the women's alpine events at the 2026 Olympics was a key motivator for Vonn, she told reporters last year."If it had been anywhere else, I would probably say it's not worth it," she said in October. "But for me there's something special about Cortina that always pulls me back, and it's pulled me back one last time." Vonn's comeback began with a partial knee replacement in 2024 that installed a titanium implant in her right knee. Before her ACL tear late last month at a race in Switzerland, Vonn's performance this season had left no room for debate. She was atop the FIS leaderboard with two World Cup wins, bringing her career total to 84, and five other podium finishes. her the has to and Sponsor Message Become an NPR sponsor