Vonn

It’s been one surprise after another lately from Lindsey Vonn. And the announcement that the 41-year-old slopes queen has qualified for the Milano Cortina Olympics in February isn’t the last of it.

It might have been her post on Instagram that stated unequivocally that this will be the end.

“I am honored to be able to represent my country one more time, in my 5th and final Olympics!” Vonn said.

Vonn’s remarkable and inspiring comeback from injuries and a seven-year hiatus from top-level competitive skiing has injected the U.S. team narrative with an irresistible story line. That her quest will culminate in the mountains of northern Italy just two months from now will make it must-watch television and social media video.

The last two weeks have thrust Vonn back onto the international stage as well as the podium, which she climbed in four of her first five races this season. That includes a spectacular win in the downhill in St. Moritz, Switzerland, on Dec. 12.

That marked her first World Cup victory since 2018. And now it’s official that Vonn will compete in her fifth Olympics where she won gold in the downhill and bronze in the super-G at the 2010 Games in Vancouver and bronze in the downhill in the 2018 Games in PyeongChang.

Much of the astonishment circles back to her age. Vonn’s win in St. Moritz made her the oldest woman to win a World Cup race — by seven years. Federica Brignone of Italy set a record a year ago when she won 10 races at age 34.

She also is the first World Cup winner with titanium implants in her right knee. And she’ll become the first quadragenerian to lead the U.S. Alpine skiiing squad seven years after she had all but retired.

In a moving column on Feb. 10, 2019, at the World Championships, The Times’ Helene Elliott wrote what essentially was a sendoff for Vonn: “She went all out to the very end, because that’s the only way Lindsey Vonn knew how to ski. She was bruised and battered as she went to the start gate on Sunday for the final race of her career, sore all over and her right eye blackened by the impact of a crash she suffered during a super-giant slalom race earlier in the week at the World Championships. Her ligaments tore and her bones sometimes broke but her competitiveness was never dimmed, never dented, never compromised.”

Well, 2026 is around the bend and Vonn is back and intact, her competitiveness never compromised still. She has not officially qualified for the Olympics in the super-G, but she’s the fastest American and No. 3 in the world, so count on that as her next headline.

“Lindsey qualifying for the 2026 Olympic team is a testament to her resilience and dedication, and the remarkable results she’s delivered on the World Cup this season,” Sophie Goldschmidt, U.S. Ski & Snowboard’s president and CEO, said in a statement. “She’s proven once again that elite performance isn’t just about past success, it’s about rising to the moment, race after race.

“We’re thrilled to cheer her on at the Olympics.”

American Lindsey Vonn claimed a podium spot for the third time in four World Cup races by finishing third in the downhill in Val d’Isere on Saturday.

The 41-year-old, who last week became the oldest downhill World Cup winner, clinched her 141st World Cup podium finish.

Vonn, who hadn’t raced at the French Alps resort in eight years, crossed the line in one minute 41.89 seconds – 0.35secs behind winner Cornelia Huetter of Austria, with Kira Weidle-Winkelmann of Germany in second.

Vonn retired from the sport in February 2019 because of injury and made her competitive return in December 2024 following a partial knee replacement.

With 48 days to go until the Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics, which run from 6-22 February, Vonn will be hoping to add to the four World Cup titles she has gathered over a career that has spanned 20 years.

She already has one gold and two bronze Olympic medals to her name and is on track to represent the United States at the 2026 Games.

Saturday’s event was part of this season’s World Cup campaign, with a total of nine races taking place before the Finals at Kvitfjell in Norway on 21 March 2026. The Val d’Isere leg concludes on Sunday with a super-G.

American Lindsey Vonn became the oldest skiing downhill World Cup winner at St Moritz in Switzerland on Friday.

The 41-year-old retired from the sport in February 2019 because of knee problems but made her competitive return in December 2024.

Vonn has collected one gold and two bronze Olympic medals in her career to date and is on track to represent the USA at the 2026 Games in February.

She crossed the line in one minute and 29.63 seconds – nearly a second quicker than second-placed Magdalena Egger – to wrap up her 83rd World Cup win and first since 2018.

“I knew I was skiing fast but you never know until the first race,” Vonn told TNT Sports.

“I think I was a little faster than I expected. It’s a very exciting time. Obviously my goal is Cortina but if this is the way we start, I think I’m in a good spot.”

Vonn seized skiing’s oldest World Cup winner record from Switzerland’s Didier Cuche, who had held it since his victory in the super-G at Crans Montana, USA in 2012 aged 37.

The oldest winner on the women’s circuit was Austrian Elisabeth Goergl for her victory in the super-G at Val d’Isere, France in 2014, at the age of 33.

It was Vonn’s 83rd World Cup victory and first since she won in Are, Sweden, in March 2018.

Vonn has four overall World Cup titles from a glittering career that has spanned 20 years.

“The win means so much to me. I knew in the summer I was on the right path, and all the hard work has paid off,” Vonn added.

“I thought I might retire after the last race of the Olympics, because I didn’t think I’d be competitive for a title, but I might need to change my approach.”

Friday’s event marked the beginning of the downhill World Cup campaign, with a further eight races taking place before the World Cup Finals at Kvitfjell in Norway on 21 March.

In her 125th career World Cup downhill start, 24 years after her debut and eight years since her last major win, Lindsey Vonn sped to a stunning victory in St. Moritz, Switzerland, on Friday.

It was as if Vonn announced to the world that not only is she back after a six-year retirement, the 41-year-old American slopes legend is ready to rule downhill skiing again at the Milan Cortina Winter Olympics in February.

And it came only six weeks after she told The Times that she “had nothing to prove.” In October she compared her comeback to that of Michael Jordan, saying that his return from retirement isn’t “part of his legacy at all.”

“I’ve already succeeded,” Vonn continued. “I’ve already won. I was on the podium. I have the record for the oldest medalist in World Cup by seven years. I feel like this journey has been incredible.”

Lindsey Vonn, center, celebrates her FIS Alpine Ski World Cup Women’s Downhill win in St Moritz, Switzerland.

(Mateo Sgambato/Getty Images)

Vonn’s math is correct. She certainly is the oldest woman to win a World Cup race and has 83 victories across all World Cup disciplines. Federica Brignone of Italy set a record a year ago when she won a World Cup race — she won 10, actually — at age 34. Brignone is not racing this weekend because of an injury.

Vonn is the only American woman to win an Olympics gold medal in downhill, having done so at the 2010 Vancouver Games. She also won bronze medals in the super-G 2010 and downhill in 2018.

Oh, and she is the first World Cup winner with titanium implants in her right knee.

Vonn finished with a flourish Friday, taking the lead by 1.16 seconds ahead of Mirjam Puchner of Austria despite trailing by 0.61 after the first two time checks. Vonn’s eventual victory was by 0.98 seconds when upstart Austrian Magdalena Egger took second place.

After a ho-hum first half, Vonn posted the fastest times of anyone through the bottom half, reaching 74 mph and completing the course in 1 minute, 29.63 seconds.

“It was an amazing day, I couldn’t be happier, pretty emotional,” Vonn told Swiss broadcaster RTS. “I felt good this summer but I wasn’t sure how fast I was. I guess I know now how fast I am.”

After laying in the snow beyond the finish line, Vonn saw her time and raised her arms. She stood and yelped, then placed her hands to her left cheek in a purely American gesture, mimicking NBA star Steph Curry’s “Night, night.”

Lindsey Vonn takes 1st place during the Audi FIS Alpine Ski World Cup Women’s Downhill.

(Alain Grosclaude/Getty Images)

“In my mind, I was thinking, ‘OK, well, I just need to ski the pitch really clean and carry my speed down,’” Vonn told reporters after the race. “I still didn’t ski the best that I could have on the compression at the bottom, but I tried to be dynamic, tried to be clean, the way I’ve been skiing and training, and it was pretty solid.”

Vonn has been working with a new coach, 36-time World Cup winner Aksel Lund Svindal. The partnership is already proving promising.

“We worked really hard, not just me but my whole team, from the equipment to the physical training, also hired Aksel,” Vonn said. “I knew I was skiing fast, but you never know until the first race. I think I was a little faster than I expected. I think I had a great run, but I also made some mistakes, so I’m excited for tomorrow.”

Vonn will take part in another downhill race Saturday and a super-G on Sunday.