On the verge of tears, US ski star Lindsey Vonn speaks out in an emotional Instagram video around two weeks after her momentous fall at the Winter Games.
23.02.2026, 17:15
23.02.2026, 17:22
SDA
"It's been a long road, the most extreme and painful injury I've had in my entire life. They cut open both sides of the leg like a fillet to let it breathe. The doctor saved my leg from amputation. He saved me," said the 41-year-old.
The speed ski specialist suffered a complex shin injury in her crash in the downhill. "After lying in a hospital bed for almost two weeks, almost unable to move, I'm finally well enough to move into a hotel," Vonn wrote on her video.
For the first time, the US American spoke in detail about the injuries she suffered in the accident. "I had a complex tibia fracture, also the tibial plateau. Everything was shattered," Vonn described. She also suffered compartment syndrome. "That means I had so much trauma in that area of the body - there's too much blood there, it gets stuck and more or less crushes everything. Muscles, nerves, everything dies."
One operation alone took six hours. "I was in hospital longer than I would have hoped because I had very low haemoglobin levels from all the operations and blood loss. I was really struggling, the pain was almost unbearable. I had a blood transfusion, which helped me," Vonn continued.
An old injury of all things could have been decisive. "I always say that everything in life has a purpose. If I hadn't torn my cruciate ligament just before the Olympics, Tom (her doctor) wouldn't have been there. And then he wouldn't have been able to save my life, so I'm very grateful for that," says Vonn.
She now wants to concentrate fully on her rehabilitation. In a few weeks, Vonn wants to switch from a wheelchair to crutches "It will take about a year for all the bones to heal completely," explained the 2010 Olympic downhill champion. After that, she wants to decide whether the inserted metal parts should be completely removed again. Only then is the final treatment of her cruciate ligament planned in a further operation.
Vonn tore her cruciate ligament in the World Cup race in Crans-Montana just before the Winter Olympics. Nevertheless, the two-time world champion competed in Italy. She began her comeback at the end of 2024 - with the aim of winning downhill gold at the Winter Games in Italy.
