VAIL, Colo. — American skier Lindsey Vonn recently opened up about a serious crash during the women’s downhill event at the Milan Cortina Olympics. What started as a routine run quickly turned into a nightmare when she clipped a gate and lost control just 13 seconds in.
Initially, Vonn revealed she fractured her tibia, but the situation was much worse. She developed compartment syndrome, a condition where pressure builds up within the muscles, cutting off blood flow. “When you have so much trauma, blood gets stuck and crushes everything,” she explained.
Thanks to the quick actions of Dr. Tom Hackett, her orthopedic surgeon, her leg was saved. He performed a fasciotomy, a procedure where the skin is opened to relieve pressure. “He filleted it open and let it breathe,” Vonn said. Dr. Hackett was actually in Cortina because she had injured her ACL just before the Olympics. If she hadn’t been injured, he wouldn’t have been there to help her.
Vonn’s injuries didn’t stop with her leg; she also broke her right ankle. “It has been the most extreme, painful, and challenging injury of my life,” she said after multiple surgeries in Treviso, Italy. The crash left her leg “in pieces,” and she dealt with severe pain and blood loss, requiring a transfusion to stabilize her hemoglobin levels.
Currently, Vonn is wheelchair-bound and focusing on rehab. She plans to work toward using crutches, estimating a year for her leg to heal. Only then can doctors address her torn ACL, which wasn’t a factor in the crash. “It’s going to be a long road,” she stated. “I always fight and we keep going.”
Despite the setback, Vonn has no regrets about returning to skiing post-retirement or competing in the Olympics with an existing knee injury. “I’d rather go down swinging than not try at all,” she remarked. Before her crash, she was leading the World Cup series in downhill skiing. “This year was incredible and so worth everything,” Vonn added.
Reflecting on her injuries, she characterized them as “one blip on the radar.” Her father, Alan Kildow, wishes she would retire, but Vonn maintains a fighting spirit. “Life is life, and we have to take the punches that come,” she said. “I’m like Rocky. I’ll just keep getting back up.”
In a recent study, approximately 80% of athletes face significant injuries during their careers, leading many to rethink their futures in competitive sports. Vonn’s story serves as a powerful reminder of resilience and courage in the face of adversity. Learn more about Olympic events and updates at the AP Winter Olympics page.
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Lindsey Vonn, Tom Hackett, Surgery, 2026 Milan Cortina Olympic Games, Injuries, General news, 2026 Winter Olympics, U.S. news, World news, Sports, Health, Alpine skiing, Alan Kildow, Accidents, Italy, World News, U.S. News
