Lindsey Vonn’s Olympic dream lasted just seconds before disaster struck

Lindsey Vonn’s hopes of completing one of the most unlikely comebacks in Olympic history were crushed on Sunday after a devastating crash just 13 seconds into the women’s downhill final at the Milan Cortina Winter Olympics.

Skiing in a brace only nine days after rupturing the ACL in her left knee, Vonn lost control before reaching the first timing marker on the Tofane course in Cortina d’Ampezzo. She tumbled heavily, hitting her head before coming to a stop as screams of pain were heard on the broadcast.

Local officials later confirmed the 41-year-old American broke her left leg and required surgery to stabilise the injury.

The crowd gathered at the bottom of the course, including members of Vonn’s family, fell silent as medical teams rushed to her side. Within minutes, she was secured to a stretcher, zipped into a red medical bag and airlifted by helicopter from the mountain.

Vonn had pushed out of the gate as the 13th competitor on the 1.6-mile downhill course under clear conditions, attempting to become the oldest Alpine skier, male or female, to win an Olympic medal. Her run ended almost immediately.

Vonn’s sister, Karin Kildow, said the family’s focus quickly shifted from medals to her health.

“That’s definitely the last thing we wanted to see,” Kildow told NBC. “When that happens, you’re just immediately hoping she’s ok. When you start to see the stretchers being put out, it’s not a good sign. She dared greatly and put her whole heart into this.”

Team USA head speed coach Paul Kristofic said Vonn remained under medical evaluation in Cortina, with no immediate update on her condition.

“We don’t know anything really yet,” Kristofic told reporters. “She’s with a medical team in the hospital and they’re evaluating her now.”

While the race continued, it was largely overshadowed by Vonn’s crash. Fellow American Breezy Johnson took the early lead with a time of 1:36.1, which narrowly held to earn gold. The margin between gold and silver was just four-hundredths of a second, making Johnson only the second U.S. woman, alongside Vonn, to win Olympic downhill gold.

The result was especially cruel given Vonn’s recent form. Despite her knee injury, she had posted the third-fastest training time on Saturday and was competing on a course she has long described as her favourite. Twelve of her 84 World Cup victories have come in Cortina.

Vonn was chasing her first Olympic downhill medal since winning gold in Vancouver 16 years ago. She also won Olympic bronze medals in downhill at the 2018 Games and in super-G in 2010.

Her return to elite competition had already defied expectations. After announcing in 2024 that she would come back five years after retiring due to injury, Vonn underwent a robotically assisted partial knee replacement that helped fuel what she described as her most consistently healthy season in a decade. This winter, she finished on the podium in all five World Cup races she entered, including two victories, becoming the oldest skier ever to win on the circuit.

A crash in Switzerland late last month had raised fresh doubts about whether her Olympic push was realistic. Still, few expected her medal bid to end so abruptly.

Within seconds of the start, Lindsey Vonn’s Olympic gamble was over, leaving the Milan Cortina Games without their biggest star and one of sport’s boldest comeback stories unfinished.