Lindsey Vonn knows the challenges that await her as she prepares to compete in the 2026 Milano Cortina Winter Olympics with a ruptured ACL.
Discussing a path forward Tuesday, Vonn — who crashed and injured her left knee in a downhill race Friday and had to be airlifted off a course in Switzerland — said the “biggest issue” she’s concerned about is “instability in the joint” as she looks to hit the slopes for her fifth and final Olympics.
“Your ACL is what really keeps your knee in place. Without that, there can be shifting, your bones kind of shift over each other. It’s not a great feeling. So far, I haven’t had that feeling, and that’s why I’m wearing a brace, just to keep it as stable as possible and prevent any further damage. Not that it really matters cause my meniscus is not great anyway, but yeah, that’s kind of my biggest concern,” the Alpine skier said Tuesday from Italy.
Vonn, an Olympic gold medalist in the downhill, added that “as long as I can keep it stable, as long as I have the brace on, I have no swelling and my muscles are activating appropriately, I should be OK.
“I can’t guarantee what it’s going to feel like once I get into some of the big turns, and that’s what we’ll have to see after the first training round.”
Vonn’s status for the Milano-Cortina Games was thrown into question following Friday’s harrowing incident, one that hasn’t rattled the three-time Olympic medalist.
“I am not in pain. It was painful initially after the crash, which is why I had concern, which is why I went via helicopter to the hospital,” she said Tuesday. “I had a feeling it was bad, but I held out hope until I saw the MRI in front of me. I haven’t cried, I haven’t deviated from my plan, I’ve been determined. Normally, in the past, there’s always a moment where you break down, and you realize the severity of things and that your dreams are slipping through your fingers but I didn’t have that this time. I’m not letting this slip through my fingers.”
It would be quite the comeback for Vonn, who first retired in 2019 amid a career filled with injuries.
She returned to the sport in 2024, the same year she had a partial knee replacement.
Vonn qualified for the Winter Olympics a year later.
“I am honored to be able to represent my country one more time, in my 5th and final Olympics!” she exclaimed on Instagram in December. “When I made the decision to return to ski racing, I always had one eye on Cortina because it’s a place that is very, very special to me.
“Although I can’t guarantee any outcomes, I can guarantee that I will give my absolute best every time l kick out of the starting gate. No matter how these games end up, I feel like I’ve already won.”
The first events of the 2026 Winter Games begin Wednesday, with the opening ceremony set for Friday.