Lindsey Vonn has never backed down from a challenge, and her alpine ski racing career is a testament to that. With 83 World Cup victories and over 130 podium finishes, three Olympic medals, and eight World Championship medals, she's a force to be reckoned with. Even a recent ACL tear hasn't stopped her from hitting the slopes for the 2026 Milano Cortina Olympics.
However, despite her third-highest super ranking among both male and female skiers in history, behind only Austrian Marcel Hirscher and fellow American Mikaela Shiffrin, Lindsey's journey back to the mountain has been a challenging one. Seven years ago, she announced her retirement from skiing, confirming that the 2019 World Championships would be her last due to her knees giving out.
"I have always pushed the limits of ski racing and it has allowed me to have amazing success but also dramatic crashes," she wrote on Instagram at the time. "I have never wanted the storyline of my career to be about injuries, so I didn't tell anyone that I underwent surgery this past Spring."
Despite extensive therapy, training, and a knee brace, she wasn't able to make the turns necessary to compete at her best. "My body is broken beyond repair and it isn't letting me have the final season I dreamed of," she continued. "My body is screaming at me to STOP, and it's time for me to listen."
With her third-place downhill finish at the World Championships that year, it seemed Lindsey had hung up her racing skis for good. But ultimately, that wasn't the case. In November 2024, at age 40, Lindsey announced she was coming out of retirement, seven months after having her right knee replaced.
"Obviously, I wouldn't be doing this if I didn't hope to be racing," she told The New York Times at the time. "I have aspirations. I love to go fast. How fast can I go? I don't know."
The answer was still pretty damn fast. Lindsey once again made it to the World Championships just three months later in February 2025, where she ultimately placed 15th in the downhill competition. And come November, following back-to-back bronze medals in the Super G tournament and weeks of historic wins, Lindsey once again beat the odds and qualified for the Olympic team.
"I am honored to be able to represent my country one more time, in my 5th and final Olympics," she shared on Instagram. "When I made the decision to return to ski racing, I always had one eye on Cortina because it's a place that is very, very special to me."
"Although I can't guarantee any outcomes," she added. "I can guarantee that I will give my absolute best every time I step out of the starting gate. No matter how these games end up, I feel like I've already won. I am grateful for how the season has gone so far, but I am just getting started. See you in Cortina!!"
With the momentum of her wins and the excitement of a nation thrilled to see the return of a champion backing her, the skier seemed poised to once again make history at the Games. That is, until it almost all came crashing down—literally. On Jan. 30, Lindsey was airlifted to a hospital after crashing at the World Cup in Switzerland. Following testing, she confirmed she'd ruptured her left ACL.
But what would have sidelined many other athletes has served only as an inconvenience for the Minnesota native. "After extensive consultations with doctors, intense therapy, physical tests, as well as skiing today, I have determined I am capable of competing in the Olympic Downhill on Sunday," Lindsey shared on Instagram Feb. 3. "Of course, I will still need to do one training run, as is required to race on Sunday, but...I am confident in my body's ability to perform."
"I know what my chances in these Olympics were before this crash, and even though my chances aren't the same now, there is still a chance," she continued. "And as long as I have a chance, I will not lose hope. I will not give up! It's not over yet!"
Because no, it's not over yet. And when Lindsey nailed a successful training run on Feb. 6, ahead of the official competition on the 8th, she had an entire nation cheering her on.
