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Lindsey Vonn moved a step closer to one of the most improbable Olympic starts in Alpine skiing history on Friday, producing an aggressive and largely clean downhill training run on the Olimpia delle Tofane course less than a week after fully rupturing the ACL in her left knee and being airlifted off a mountain in Switzerland.
The 41-year-old American clocked 1min 40.33sec in a fog-delayed session, but the time itself was secondary to what the run represented: proof that she can still attack a course at speed – and survive it – as she targets Sunday’s medal race.
Wearing bib No 10 and a brace on the injured knee, Vonn was forced to wait more than 90 minutes at the top of the mountain as low cloud and fog repeatedly halted the session. The delays came after Slovenia’s Ilka Stuhec crashed early, forcing course regrooming, before fog again rolled in after the fourth starter, Austria’s Nina Ortlieb. Norway’s Marte Monsen, who also crashed in Crans-Montana last week, did not start.
Vonn kept warm in her ski jacket alongside teammates while waiting for the restart, passing time with stretches, social media posts and even brief impromptu dance breaks to Usher as officials waited for visibility to improve.
When she finally pushed out of the start gate, the run itself lasted little more than 100 seconds but answered the question hanging over her Olympic participation.
Vonn skied with visible intent from the top, briefly getting tight to her line midway down and only narrowly clearing one gate. She was among the fastest through the final checkpoints, reaching a maximum speed of 75.2mph (121km/h), before standing up out of her tuck approaching the finish. At the bottom of the piste, she exchanged fist pumps and a hug with US teammate Breezy Johnson, who started just ahead of her as the session resumed after more than an hour’s delay due to fog.
The session carried added weight after Thursday’s scheduled opening training was canceled because of heavy snowfall, leaving Friday as the penultimate on-course test before the race. Skiers are required to complete one training run in order to compete in the final.
Vonn’s Olympic preparation was dealt a catastrophic blow last week when she crashed during the final World Cup downhill before the Games in Crans-Montana. She was airlifted to hospital after losing control on a landing in deteriorating conditions during a chaotic morning that saw multiple crashes before organizers abandoned the race.
Scans later confirmed a complete ACL rupture in her left knee, along with a bone bruise and meniscal damage of uncertain origin. Since the injury, she has framed participation as a day-to-day decision based on swelling, muscle response and knee stability inside a heavy brace she has worn throughout training.
“Last Friday in Crans Montana in the last World Cup I completely ruptured my ACL,” Vonn said Tuesday. “I have to take it day by day. My goal is obviously right now the downhill. I have to see how it feels – if it’s stable and I feel confident, I’ll continue to race. But I can’t tell you that answer until I actually ski 85 miles an hour.”
Friday’s run represented the closest thing yet to that test.
Vonn has maintained that her overall conditioning remains elite even as she manages structural damage in the knee.
“My fitness is 100%, but that doesn’t mean my body is 100%,” she said Tuesday. “As long as my swelling is down and my muscles are firing, my strength is what it was a few days ago.”
She has also leaned into the emotional weight of the moment, posting on social media before Friday’s training: “Nothing makes me happier. No one would have believed I would be here. But I made it. I’m here, I’m smiling and no matter what, I know how lucky I am. I’m not going to waste this chance.”
