"On Sunday in Cortina, atop one of the most challenging downhill slopes in all of Alpine skiing, the biggest American story of these still-young Olympic Games stood poised in the starting gates, 90 seconds away from a storybook ending. "That moment that this entire world has awaited has finally now arrived for Lindsey Vonn," said NBC's Dan Hicks, as the American skier breathed deeply in advance of her run. "Her family, her father, her sisters, her brother-all assembled down at the bottom of the hill, wondering if Lindsey can pull off the improbable one more time.""
"Improbable was selling her story short. Vonn, 41, is one of the greatest skiers of all time, with three Olympic medals and 84 World Cup victories to her name. But she stopped skiing competitively in 2019, and though she was included in the Beijing Winter Games in 2022, she was there providing commentary for NBC. In the fall of 2024, though, flexing a newly replaced right knee, Vonn announced she would return to competitive skiing in advance of the 2026 Winter Games."
"Then, less than two weeks ago, disaster struck: Vonn crashed in the last World Cup race before the Olympics, tearing her left ACL and seemingly killing her chances of racing for gold at Milan Cortina. Undaunted, she announced that, ACL be damned, she would compete at the Winter Games anyway. Hubris? Maybe. But Vonn came in third in Saturday's training run, proving once and for all that ligaments are overrated."
Lindsey Vonn, 41, prepared to race the Cortina downhill at the 2026 Winter Olympics after ending her competitive career in 2019 and serving as an NBC commentator in 2022. She announced a comeback in fall 2024 following a right-knee replacement and then suffered a left ACL tear in the final World Cup race before the Games. She nonetheless declared she would compete and placed third in a training run, undercutting expectations about injury. Broadcaster Dan Hicks framed the moment as long-awaited, and analyst Steve Porino predicted Vonn would ski at her limit.
Read at Slate Magazine
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