Lindsey Vonn is preparing to finally return home one week after her horror crash in the women’s downhill at the Winter Olympics that sparked fears that she could lose her left leg.
The American, 41, underwent a fourth procedure on her broken leg – a complex tibia fracture – on Saturday after she crashed on February 8 while attempting to compete on a torn ACL in Cortina, Italy.
The skiing legend finally received some positive news on Sunday when it was revealed that she was preparing to leave the Ca’ Foncello Hospital in Treviso and make the journey back to the United States.
Sophie Goldschmidt, president and CEO of the US Ski and Snowboard Association, told the Associated Press that the team’s medical staff has been coordinating Vonn’s recovery since the devastating crash, which resulted in her having to be airlifted off the mountain.
The medical staff will reportedly try to accompany the former Olympic champion home, where she is expected to undergo further surgeries.
‘We’re working through all of that at the moment,’ Goldschmidt said. ‘We’ve got a great team around helping her and she’ll go back to the US for further surgeries.’
Lindsey Vonn is preparing to finally return to the United States after her Winter Olympic crash
The skiing legend suffered a broken left leg after she crashed in the women’s downhill
Vonn crashed just 13 seconds into her round in the downhill when her right arm clipped the gate, sending her flying head-over-heels.
She was heard screaming out after the crash as she was surrounded by medical personnel before she was strapped to a gurney and flown away by a helicopter.
‘The impact, the silence, everyone was just in shock. And you could tell it was a really nasty injury,’ said Goldschmidt, who was there. ‘There’s a lot of danger in doing all sorts of Alpine sports but it gives more of an appreciation for how superhuman these athletes are.’
‘I mean, putting your body on the line, going at those speeds, the physicality. Sometimes actually on the broadcast it’s really hard to get that across,’ Goldschmidt added. ‘Danger sometimes brings fans in and is pretty captivating. We obviously hope we won’t have injuries like that but it is unfortunately part and parcel of our sports.’
Vonn herself insisted that she had no regrets about competing at the Games, despite tearing her ACL in her left leg just days before the downhill event.
She claimed that the existing injury had no influence over what happened and remarkably vowed to ski again one day in the future.
While she surely meant it in a recreational sense rather than trying once again to compete at the highest level, Vonn said: ‘Please, don’t feel sad. The ride was worth the fall. When I close my eyes at night I don’t have regrets and the love I have for skiing remains.
Sophie Goldschmidt, president and CEO of the US Ski and Snowboard Association, shared an updated on Vonn’s recovery process one week after the devastating incident
The 41-year-old has undergone four surgeries to repair the complex tibia fracture
‘I am still looking forward to the moment when I can stand on the top of the mountain once more. And I will.’
She shared that her fourth surgery had been a success, opening the door to a return to the US, before insisting that she didn’t want people pitying her after suffering such a horrifying leg break.
‘I have been reading a lot of messages and comments saying that what has happened to me makes them sad. Please, don’t be sad,’ she said. ‘Empathy, love and support I welcome with an open heart, but please not sadness or sympathy.
‘I hope instead it gives you strength to keep fighting, because that is what I am doing and that is what I will continue to do. Always.
‘When I think back on my crash, I didn’t stand in the starting gate unaware of the potential consequences. I knew what I was doing. I chose to take a risk. Every skier in that starting gate took the same risk.
‘Because even if you are the strongest person in the world, the mountain always holds the cards.’
Goldschmidt said that she had visited Vonn at the hospital twice, adding, ‘She’s not in pain. She’s in a stable condition.’
‘She took an aggressive line and was all in and it was inches off what could have ended up a very different way,’ Goldschmidt continued. ‘But what she’s done for our sports and the sport in general, her being a role model, has gone to a whole new level. You learn often more about people during these tough moments than when they’re winning.’
Vonn was taken off the slope and to a local hospital via helicopter after the premature finish
Vonn said she still needs at least another two surgeries but hopes to be back in the US soon
Vonn’s defiant comments, while positive, may have concerned her father. Alan Kildow has made no secret of how much he wants his daughter to retire after watching her get badly hurt at these Games.
‘She’s 41 years old and this is the end of her career,’ he told Associated Press last week. ‘There will be no more ski races for Lindsey Vonn, as long as I have anything to say about it.’
‘She’s a very strong individual. She knows physical pain and she understands the circumstances that she finds herself in.
‘And she’s able to handle it. Better than I expected. She’s a very, very strong person. And so I think she’s handling it real well.’
