US Skiing legend Lindsey Vonn to make sensational surprise comeback at 40, over five years after final race
Updated 14/11/2024 at 13:26 GMT
American skiing great Lindsey Vonn is to come out of retirement, aged 40, five years after stepping away from the sport. The 2010 Olympic gold medallist and two-time world champion will return to the US ski team tomorrow and could make a World Cup return next month at Beaver Creek, the place she won her first World Cup on American soil 13 years ago.
Flashback: Vonn secures her first World Cup win in the downhill at Lake Louise in 2004!
Video credit: TNT Sports
American legend Lindsey Vonn has not ruled out competing at the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan-Cortina having announced her comeback to skiing, one month after turning 40 and over five years since retiring from the sport.
The 2010 Olympic downhill champion will return to the United States ski team tomorrow (Friday) and hopes to make a return at the World Cup event in Beaver Creek next month (December 14 and 15) before potentially entering Super-G races on December 21 and 22 in St Moritz.
Vonn retired in 2019 after winning bronze at the World Championships in Sweden, becoming the first woman to win a medal at six editions of the competition, having won double gold in 2009 at Val-d'Isere.
At the time, Vonn said her body was "broken beyond repair and it isn’t letting me have the final season I dreamed of. My body is screaming at me to STOP and it’s time for me to listen.”
But after knee surgery in April, she feels confident in her body again. Speculation has been growing that she could make a return since she was seen training in New Zealand before making an appearance on the slopes of Solden ahead of the World Cup season opener in Austria last month.
“I’m trying not to get too far ahead of myself because I have quite a few hoops to jump through,” Vonn told the New York Times.
“Obviously, I wouldn’t be doing this if I didn’t hope to be racing. I have aspirations. I love to go fast. How fast can I go? I don’t know.
“But I’m not going to put myself in a position to fail. My goal is to enjoy this, and hopefully that road takes me to World Cup races. I wouldn’t be back on the U.S. ski team if I didn’t have intentions.
“I’m not chasing anything; I’m not trying to prove anything to anyone. With what I’ve done in my career, I’m thankful I can be in this position. I don’t have any pressure. It’s just me and the mountain like it was in the beginning.”
“Lindsey has made an indelible mark on alpine skiing and our organization throughout her career. We’re delighted to welcome her back,” said Sophie Goldschmidt, president and CEO of US Ski and Snowboard.
“Her dedication and passion towards alpine skiing is inspiring and we’re excited to have her back on snow and see where she can go from here.”
The Winter Olympics in Milan-Cortina are just 15 months away and asked if she could compete at a sixth Games, following her first in 2002, Vonn did not rule it out.
“I’ve always enjoyed racing in Cortina and I’ve had a lot of success in Cortina,” she said.
“I don’t know what the next few months and the next year and a half hold for me. So I can’t say right now if it’s a possibility. But I think everyone knows how much I love Cortina.”
The American is the latest big name great to return to the top circuit, after Marcel Hirscher made his comeback in Solden having also retired in the same year. The 35-year-old double Olympic champion - who is now representing the Netherlands - finished 23rd in the giant slalom.
Lucas Pinheiro Braathen also made his return at Solden, albeit from a far shorter lay-off, as he returned from a year away from racing, now competing under the Brazilian flag.
Starting in 2008, Vonn won 20 World Cup titles in total, in addition to three Olympic medals and eight podium finishes at World Championships.
But since retiring, she has seen fellow American Mikaela Shiffrin break her previous women's record of 82 World Cup wins, with the 29-year-old now closing in on her 100th having already surpassed Ingemar Stenmark's all-time best of 86.
Although they specialise in different disciplines, Vonn will be hoping to make an impact when she returns to the circuit next month.
- Shiffrin 'energised' by potential 100th World Cup win
- Return of the king - Hirscher returns to the snow in Solden
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