- U.S. Olympian Lindsey Vonn is updating fans on her health.
- The skier crashed during the Alpine women’s downhill event at the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics on Sunday.
- She recently underwent surgery after suffering a complex tibia fracture.
Lindsey Vonn is updating fans on her health after crashing during the Alpine women’s downhill event at the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics.
Despite tearing her ACL mere days before the Games began, the 41-year-old skier had high hopes for the Games. Unfortunately, things quickly soured when she crashed just 13 seconds into the downhill course on Sunday and had to be airlifted out. On Monday, Vonn shared that the horrific incident had resulted in her sustaining a complex tibia fracture that would “require multiple surgeries to fix properly,” she noted in an Instagram post from the hospital.
The athlete is on the mend, though. “I had my [third] surgery today, and it was successful,” she wrote. “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.”
Vonn is an absolute powerhouse skier, winning numerous World Cup titles and taking home an Olympic gold medal in downhill at the Vancouver 2010 Olympics. Although she retired in 2019, the 41-year-old picked up her skis once more to make her fifth Olympic appearance and become the oldest female Alpine skier to compete in the event.
As for why she crashed? “I was simply 5 inches too tight on my line when my right arm hooked inside of the gate, twisting me and resulted in my crash,” she wrote in another Instagram post. “My ACL and past injuries had nothing to do with my crash whatsoever.”
She continued: “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,” she continued. “I hope if you take away anything from my journey, it’s that you all have the courage to dare greatly.”
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