Lindsey Vonn Returns to Competitive Skiing After Retirement: “I’m Officially Back!”
Lindsey Vonn, 40, is making a triumphant return to competitive skiing after retiring following the 2018-2019 season. The Olympian announced her comeback in November and has since celebrated her first race back on the slopes.
“I’m officially BACK!!” Vonn wrote in a Dec. 22 Instagram post. “It’s been 2,162 days since my last World Cup race (almost six years!), but yesterday I got back in the starting gate and competed once again.”
Vonn competed in the Super G race in St. Moritz, Switzerland, on Dec. 21, finishing in 14th place. She described her performance as “a perfect place to start” and expressed excitement for the journey ahead, promising to train throughout the winter and come back even stronger in 2025.
Her next competition is slated for Jan. 11-12 in St. Anton am Arlberg, Austria, during the Audi FIS Ski World Cup Women.
Vonn’s decision to return followed a successful right knee replacement surgery. She also plans to rejoin Team USA in time for the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan and Cortina d’Ampezzo, Italy, with the World Cup circuit serving as her primary focus this winter.
In an interview with The New York Times, Vonn described her post-surgery experience as “amazing and definitely not planned,” recalling the joy of skiing again: “I had a smile so wide it was coming through the back of my helmet.” She added, “I love to go fast. How fast can I go? I don’t know.”
During her illustrious career, Vonn earned four World Cup overall championships, eight World Cup season titles, and multiple Olympic medals, including gold and bronze in 2010 and another bronze in 2018. She became the first American woman to win a gold medal in the downhill race at the 2010 Winter Olympics.
174 Rescued from Malfunctioning Gondola at Colorado Ski Resort
A gondola malfunction at Winter Park Resort near Denver left 174 people stranded in the air for hours on Saturday. A crack in a metal support structure caused the lift to automatically shut down for safety, prompting a massive rescue operation.
Ski patrol and rescuers worked for five hours to lower all passengers to the ground safely, resort officials confirmed.
One skier, Aleksey Dmitriyev, recounted the experience, saying he initially thought the delay was minor but grew concerned as ski patrol began coordinating evacuations. Dmitriyev captured footage of a rescuer lowering himself into a gondola to assist passengers.
“Everybody was pretty calm,” he said. “It was a once-in-a-lifetime experience.”
Repairs and inspections were ongoing Sunday, with a new part installed and testing underway to reopen the lift.