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The ski legend is ‘stable’ after surgery on a leg fracture and the IOC have come out to defend her decision to compete
Flo Clifford in Livigno & Chris WilsonTuesday 10 February 2026 01:00 GMT- Bookmark
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CloseLindsey Vonn suffers horror crash while competing with torn ACL in Olympics comebackSenior officials at the Winter Olympics have defended Lindsey Vonn’s decision to compete in Sunday’s downhill just nine days after rupturing her anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) - with the skiing great’s horror crash described as “a one in 1000” accident.
Vonn has undergone surgery on a leg fracture after being airlifted from the slopes and is in a “stable” condition, US officials confirmed. The 41-year-old suffered the painful fall in Cortina, ensuring no comeback from a brutal left knee injury just days out from the Games at Milano-Cortina, with her father coming out and saying that he hopes it acts as “the end of her career”.
The former gold medal winner announced her intention to compete at the Games despite retiring in 2019. Nine days before the Olympics began, Vonn ruptured her anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) in a race at Crans-Montana which cast doubt over whether she should compete.
Vonn’s decision to race, and whether she should have been allowed to do so, has since been the subject of some debate. “This decision was really hers and her team's to take,” the International Olympic Committee’s sports director Pierre Ducrey said. “She made the decision and unfortunately it led to the injury.”
Follow all the latest updates from Milano-Cortina 2026 in our live blog below:
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Winter Olympics 2026
- Lindsey Vonn undergoes surgery on a left leg fracture after horror crash
- Winter Olympics chiefs defend Vonn’s decision to ski on ruptured ACL
- The American had to be airlifted directly off the slopes out of Cortina but is 'stable'
- Vonn's father hopes the injury is the 'end of her career'
- She was moved to intensive care but for 'privacy reasons' rather than medical necessity
- Vonn competed at Olympics despite picking up ACL injury just nine days before Games began
Winter Olympics officials launch investigation after athletes complain about broken medals
Olympic medallists at the Milano Cortina Winter Games are discovering their hard-won prizes are proving less robust than their athletic achievements, with reports emerging that the gold, silver, and bronze awards are prone to breaking.
Games organisers have now launched an investigation into a series of incidents where medals have cracked, chipped, or snapped, often shortly after being presented.
Andrea Francisi, Milano Cortina Chief Games Operations Officer, acknowledged the unusual situation on Monday.
Winter Olympics officials launch investigation into easily broken medals
‘We are fully aware of the situation and you have seen the pictures,’ says chief games operations officer Andrea FrancisiWill Castle10 February 2026 01:00Former skiers rush to defend Vonn
Several figures from the world of speed skiing have commented on Lindsey’s Vonn’s decision to race and her eventual crash, with most pros and pundits defending the American.
“I firmly believe that this has to be decided by the individual athlete,” FIS president Johan Eliasch said on Monday.
“And in her case, she certainly knows her injuries on her body better than anybody else. And if you look around here today with all the athletes, the athletes yesterday, every single athlete has a small injury of some kind.
“What is also important for people to understand, that the accident that she had yesterday, she was incredibly unlucky. It was a one in a 1,000,” Eliasch added.
Vonn’s teammate Keely Cashman added: “People that don’t know ski racing don’t really understand what happened yesterday. She hooked her arm on the gate, which twisted her around. She was going probably 70 miles an hour, and so that twists your body around. That has nothing to do with her ACL, nothing to with her knee. I think a lot of people are ridiculing that, and a lot people don’t (know) what’s going on.”
Will Castle10 February 2026 01:00Coach Svindal hails 'brave' Vonn and reveals incredible gesture towards champion Johnson
Lindsey Vonn’s coach Aksel Lund Svindal has spoken out for the first time following the American’s horror crash yesterday, hailing her bravery before revealing what she said before being airlifted to hospital.
He wrote on Instagram: “Lindsey. You're incredibly brave. You inspire people that follow your journey and us that work closely with you every day.
“Yesterday was a tough day on the mountain. For everyone, but most of all for you.
“Still something happened that I think says everything. "Tell Breezy congrats and good job." Your teammate was in the lead, and that's the message you wanted the US ski team coaches to remember before you got airlifted to the hospital. Real character shows up in the hard moments.”
Will Castle9 February 2026 23:30Crew who evacuated Vonn speak out
Crew who evacuated Lindsey Vonn reveal challenges of mountain rescue operationWill Castle9 February 2026 23:00Italian ski legend claims Lindsey Vonn made critical mistake before injury disaster
Lindsey Vonn suffered a horror crash at the Winter Olympics to scupper her hopes of an age-defying comeback at Milano-Cortina 2026.
But Italian ski great Alberto Tomba insists her downfall on the slopes came after a move to race at Crans-Montana last month.
The American has been criticised over her desire to win one more race, with Tomba insisting it led to a chain of risks that eventually caught up with her in the form of a ruptured anterior cruciate ligament on her left knee.
The 41-year-old lost her balance in the 30 January World Cup race in Switzerland and crashed into the side netting, but Vonn defied logic and expectations to race in Cortina d'Ampezzo, setting the third fastest time on Saturday on the Olimpia delle Tofane piste with a brace on her knee. But Sunday's race saw her airlifted to hospital for surgery on a broken leg, with Tomba criticising her preparation for the Games.
"She shouldn’t have raced at Crans-Montana," Tomba told Reuters from the terrace of a hotel in Cortina. "She should have come here and trained, instead."
Italian ski legend claims Lindsey Vonn made critical mistake before disastrous injury
The American raced at Crans-Montana days out from Milano-Cortina, leading to an ACL knee injury, and ski great Alberto Tomba claims that decision led to a chain of risks Will Castle9 February 2026 22:30Lindsey Vonn's injury history
Perhaps unsurprisingly – given the nature of the sport she competes in – the latest injury suffered by Lindsey Vonn is added to a long list of problems she’s encountered during a decorated skiing career.
To give you an idea of what it takes to be the best in a sport like this:
Will Castle9 February 2026 22:00Kirsty Muir misses out on freeski slopestyle medal by fraction of a point
Great Britain’s Kirsty Muir was denied a bronze medal in freeski slopestyle by a mere four-tenths of a point, with the Scot in tears after the result.
Switzerland’s Mathilde Gremaud won gold - to the delight of a large Swiss contingent in Livigno - with China’s Eileen Gu and Canada’s Megan Oldham rounding out the podium.
21-year-old Muir looked excellent on the first half of her first run, the three sections of rails, but came unstuck on her penultimate jump - a double cork 1080 - and only scored 37.15, putting her in provisional 10th.
It left her with ground to make up on the favourites, and although she completed her second run it looked shaky at points, with the double cork continuing to give her grief, and was only enough for 63.01.
Recently crowned X Games champion in slopestyle, Muir produced a much better run on her final, make-or-break outing, but her face at the finish told its own story, and she looked up at the heavens in disappointment as the result flashed up: fourth.
GB’s Kirsty Muir misses out on freeski slopestyle medal by fraction of a point
The 21-year-old had been among the favourites in a strong field but finished 0.41 points off the podiumWill Castle9 February 2026 21:30Ukrainian skeleton star wears helmet displaying athletes killed in Ukraine-Russia war at Winter Olympics
Ukrainian skeleton athlete Vladyslav Heraskevych trained wearing a helmet brandished with images of compatriots killed during the war in his homeland, delivering on a promise to use the Winter Olympics to keep attention on the conflict.
Visible on the helmet are teenage weightlifter Alina Perehudova, boxer Pavlo Ischenko, ice hockey player Oleksiy Loginov, actor and athlete Ivan Kononenko, diving athlete and coach Mykyta Kozubenko, shooter Oleksiy Habarov and dancer Daria Kurdel.
“Some of them were my friends,” Heraskevych, who is his country's flag bearer, told Reuters of the portraits after his training session at the Cortina sliding centre.
The 26-year-old said the International Olympic Committee had contacted Ukraine's Olympic Committee over his helmet.
"It's still being processed," he said.
Ukrainian skeleton star wears helmet with athletes killed in war at Winter Olympics
Vladyslav Heraskevych, who is Ukraine’s flag bearer, delivered a promise to use the Winter Olympics to keep attention on the conflictWill Castle9 February 2026 21:00Bruce Mouat and Jennifer Dodds fall short in bid to guarantee Team GB’s first medal
Few sports put you through the wringer quite like curling and, after this semi-final defeat, it will take some time for Bruce Mouat and Jen Dodds to straighten out.
The Scottish pair won eight of nine in the round robin, secured the top seed for the semi-finals and were favourites for the gold medal.
But the velvety touch that carried them this far deserted them at the worst possible moment and they collapsed to a 9–3 defeat to Sweden. Sport, eh.
Bronze is still on the table for Mouat and Dodds but, after such a shock to the system, they face a tall task to prevent a repeat of the last Olympics, when they lost both of their knockout matches and finished fourth.
Bruce Mouat and Jennifer Dodds fall short in bid to guarantee Team GB medal
Top seeds Mouat and Dodds dominated the round robin but came unstuck against Sweden, and will now aim to avoid a repeat of Beijing four years ago, when the lost the bronze medal matchCharlie Bennett in Cortina9 February 2026 20:53Vonn moved to intensive care 'for privacy'
US skier Lindsey Vonn was moved to intensive care “for privacy reasons” rather than medical necessity, according to the Daily Mail.
The report says that Vonn, 41, “is in intensive care” following her incident on Sunday, “although it is understood that she was transferred there for the sake of extra privacy, rather than any greater medical necessity”.
Vonn reportedly underwent two surgeries on a leg fracture in a hospital in Treviso, though her team have not provided any further updates on her condition.
Will Castle9 February 2026 20:49Newer1 / 13OlderMore about
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