Lindsey Vonn has provided an update to her recovery after suffering a broken leg during the Winter Olympics on Sunday.
The American crashed out in the downhill event when she clipped a gate and somersaulted off the course just 13.5 seconds into her run, silencing the Cortina crowd. She was on the ground for around 15 minutes before being airlifted off the course, with spectators cheering her as the helicopter flew over.
On Wednesday, Vonn shared on social media that she has successfully underwent a third surgery on her broken leg and is ‘making progress’ albeit it ‘slow’.
‘I had my third surgery today and it was successful. Success today has a completely different meaning than it did a few days ago. I’m making progress and while it is slow, I know I’ll be OK,’ she posted on Instagram alongside a picture of herself in a hospital bed in Treviso.
‘Thankful for all of the incredible medical staff, friends, family, who have been by my side and the beautiful outpouring of love and support from people around the world.
‘Also, huge congrats to my team-mates and all of the Team USA athletes who are out there inspiring me and giving me something to cheer for.’
Lindsey Vonn has ‘no regrets’ at Winter Olympics return
On Monday, Vonn took to Instagram to declare that she had no regrets on participating in Milan-Cortina despite having previously ruptured her anterior cruciate ligament.
The 41-year-old skiing legend’s preparations for her return were disrupted when she damaged her ACL the week before in a World Cup contest at Crans-Montana, Switzerland.
Vonn initially retired from the sport in 2019 due to injury but after undergoing a partial knee replacement in April 2024 returned to competition in December that year and had won two World Cup events this season before her fall in Switzerland less than a fortnight ago.
Defying the odds, the American was determined to compete in Italy but her comeback ended in heartbreak – something she doesn’t blame that on her pre-existing injury.
‘Yesterday my Olympic dream did not finish the way I dreamt it would,’ Vonn wrote on Instagram. ‘It wasn’t a story book ending or a fairytale, it was just life.
‘I dared to dream and had worked so hard to achieve it. Because in downhill ski racing the difference between a strategic line and a catastrophic injury can be as small as five inches.
‘I was simply five inches too tight on my line when my right arm hooked inside of the gate, twisting me and resulted in my crash. My ACL and past injuries had nothing to do with my crash whatsoever.
‘Unfortunately, I sustained a complex tibia fracture that is currently stable but will require multiple surgeries to fix properly.
‘While yesterday did not end the way I had hoped, and despite the intense physical pain it caused, I have no regrets.
‘Standing in the starting gate yesterday was an incredible feeling that I will never forget. Knowing I stood there having a chance to win was a victory in and of itself. I also knew that racing was a risk. It always was and always will be an incredibly dangerous sport.
‘And similar to ski racing, we take risks in life. We dream. We love. We jump. And sometimes we fall. Sometimes our hearts are broken. Sometimes we don’t achieve the dreams we know we could have. But that is also the beauty of life; we can try. I tried. I dreamt. I jumped.’
