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At the age of 40 — and after 5 years in retirement — Lindsay Vonn returned to the racecourse on Saturday, Dec. 21, at the Stifel St. Moritz World Cup. The ski racing champion placed 14th, crossing the finish line just 1.18 seconds behind Austrian winner Cornelia Hütter (32). Vonn said she raced conservatively but seemed pleased with her performance.
“This was the perfect start,” Vonn told AP News. “Today, I really needed to get to the finish. I wanted to have a solid result. And that’s exactly what I did.”
Vonn previously held the record for the most World Cup wins of any female alpine skier, with 82 to her career. Her record has only been surpassed by one other female racer, Mikaela Shiffrin, who now holds 99. Vonn told France24 last week that she intends to return to her previous level of competitive skiing, and she hopes to make the U.S. Olympic Ski Team for the 2024 Cortina Winter Olympic Games.
“Life is too short to sit on the sidelines,” she wrote in an Instagram post about coming out of retirement.
Saturday’s Super-G Race was held on St. Moritz’s Corviglia course. Vonn’s finishing time was less than a second away from earning her a place on the podium, which was shared by heavyweight competitors Cornelia Hütter (32), Lara Gut-Behrami (33), and Sofia Goggia (32). Vonn was scheduled to race again on Sunday, but poor weather and windy conditions canceled the race.
Vonn’s next chance to race in a World Cup event and earn FIS points toward making the Olympic Ski team will be in January in St. Anton, Austria.
Over her career, Vonn won one Olympic gold medal, two bronze medals, and 20 World Cup titles, making the FIS Stifel World Cup podium over 130 times. However, after sustaining multiple injuries, Vonn left the sport in 2019 at the age of 35.
In 2024, she got a titanium knee replacement. Ten weeks later, she was skiing again, training at Copper Mountain, Colo., and reportedly pain-free. Just 8 months past her surgery, Vonn made her breakout debut on the world stage in St. Moritz.
With her Olympic and World Cup racing record, Vonn more than meets the requirements for a Wild Card entry into the 2024 Cortina Winter Olympic Games. All she needs are the FIS points to qualify, which she is earning through the Stifel FIS World Cup and other qualifying races.
Earlier this month, she competed in two super-G events in a lower-level competition at Copper Mountain. She finished 19th and 24th in those races.
“I know my way back to a competitive level might take a race or two, but I certainly intend on getting back to where I was before,” she told France24.
Vonn plans to race again at the Stifel FIS St. Anton World Cup in Austria on Jan. 11-12. The event will feature both downhill and Super-G races. Again, she will be racing against some of the most elite athletes currently competing in the sport. You will be able to watch the race live and on-demand on skiandsnowboard.live.
Regardless of how Vonn performs in January, people were excited to see her back on the racecourse this past weekend.
“To have her back on the world stage is just fantastic,” Sophie Goldschmidt, president and CEO of U.S. Ski and Snowboard, told AP News. “Just the attention she’s bringing to the sport and the role model she is — it’s a big day.”
GearJunkie sat down with Mikaela Shiffrin during the Stifel Birds of Prey World Cup ski race, at her home to talk about gear. We ended up talking about a lot more.
Will is a writer, journalist, and professional misfit based out of the Roaring Fork Valley of Colorado. Will grew up on the Western Slope of the Rocky Mountains, reenacting “Survivorman” episodes and studying books like “Hatchet,” “The Monkey Wrench Gang,” and “Into the Wild.” He’s written on topics ranging from cannabis to local news, the environment and, of course, outdoor gear and adventure. If he’s not banging stories out on his computer, you’ll probably find Will skiing or mountain biking (depending on the season) — or drinking beer at some remote craft brewery.
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