Lindsey Vonn’s bid for history at the women’s downhill in Cortina, Italy, ended Sunday after a violent crash just seconds into her run that left her injured with a broken leg.
Less than 13 seconds after leaving the start gate, the 41-year-old American clipped a gate on her first major jump, throwing her off balance and sending her careening sideways down the course. The race was halted for more than 20 minutes as medical teams rushed to her aid on the Olympia delle Tofane course, one of alpine skiing’s fastest and most dangerous venues, where racers routinely exceed 75 miles per hour. Broadcast audio briefly captured Vonn’s cries of pain following the fall, and the atmosphere at the finish area turned silent as spectators, including Vonn’s family, watched in shock.
Vonn was placed on a stretcher and airlifted by helicopter to a hospital, where doctors confirmed she had fractured her left leg. According to the Associated Press, she later underwent surgery to stabilize the injury at Ca’ Foncello Hospital, where she received care from a multidisciplinary medical team. U.S. Ski & Snowboard confirmed in a statement, “Lindsey Vonn sustained an injury, but is in stable condition and in good hands with a team of American and Italian physicians.”
Vonn was attempting to become the oldest woman to medal in Olympic downhill, the same event in which she won gold at the 2010 Vancouver Games. Her return to Olympic competition followed a long road back after retiring in 2019, aided by a 2024 partial knee replacement that allowed her to resume elite competition. Just nine days earlier, however, she tore her left ACL in Switzerland during a pre-Olympic race. Despite the risk, she chose to compete and completed training runs on the same course earlier in the week.
While the mood remained somber, the race continued with American Breezy Johnson claiming the gold medal with a winning time of 1:36.10, edging Germany’s Emma Aicher by just .04 seconds. Italy’s Sofia Goggia took bronze, marking her third consecutive Olympic medal in the event. Johnson’s victory delivered the first gold medal for the United States at the Milan Cortina Games and made her only the second American woman to win Olympic downhill gold, joining Vonn.
If this race proves to be Vonn’s final Olympic appearance, she leaves the sport as one of alpine skiing’s all-time greats. Over a career spanning nearly three decades, she amassed 84 World Cup victories, 145 podium finishes, four overall World Cup titles, eight world championship medals, and three Olympic medals.
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