Lindsey Vonn is making a stunning return to the U.S. Ski Team, announcing on Thursday her intentions to race again at age 40, six years after her final Olympics. Vonn, a three-time Olympic medalist with a downhill gold and super-G bronze from the 2010 Vancouver Games, and a downhill bronze from the 2018 Pyeongchang Games, also boasts four overall World Cup championships and eight world championship medals.
Her impressive 82 World Cup race victories were a record for a woman until January 2023, when fellow American Mikaela Shiffrin surpassed her, now holding 97 wins—the most in Alpine skiing history. Shiffrin, acknowledging Vonn’s legacy, once remarked, “I don’t know if I could fill Lindsey’s shoes, the way that she has worn them.”
Vonn’s last competition was in February 2019, concluding a career marred by a series of injuries, including broken bones, torn knee ligaments, and concussions. Even after retiring, she underwent a partial knee replacement surgery this April.
In recent months, Vonn has been back in training, according to U.S. Ski & Snowboard. She expressed her excitement about skiing without pain, emphasizing her desire to share her expertise with the talented women on the U.S. team. Although it remains unclear which specific races she will target, her return is effective immediately. The first downhill race of the current World Cup season is set for December in Beaver Creek, Colorado, her specialty.
U.S. Ski & Snowboard president and CEO Sophie Goldschmidt praised Vonn’s commitment to Alpine skiing, stating, “We’re excited to have her back on snow and see where she can go from here.”
The upcoming Winter Olympics in 2026 will be in Italy, but it’s uncertain if Vonn aims to participate. Intriguingly, the women’s Alpine events will take place in Cortina d’Ampezzo, where Vonn holds a record 12 victories.
Vonn could take advantage of the International Ski and Snowboard Federation’s new wild-card rule, which grants former champions decent starting positions without the need to regain ranking points from lower-level races. This rule was recently utilized by eight-time overall World Cup champion Marcel Hirscher, who returned after a five-year hiatus.
