Lindsey Vonn sheds light on her condition and responds to haters

Lindsey Vonn, after her serious injury in Cortina, spoke for the first time on her instagram profile from the bed of the hospital where she is hospitalized: “My Olympic dream did not end as I had dreamed. It was not a fairy tale ending or a fairy tale, it was simply life. In downhill races, the difference between a strategic line and a catastrophic injury can be minimal. By just 13 cm, my right arm hooked into the door, causing the fall. The ruptured ACL and past injuries had nothing to do with it. Unfortunately, I suffered a complex fracture of the tibia that is stable, but will require several surgeries to be repaired properly”.

Andrea Gussoni

“Although yesterday did not end as I had hoped, and despite the’intense physical pain it caused, I have no regrets – the U.S. skier added later. “Being there at the starting gate yesterday was an incredible feeling that I will never forget. Knowing that I was there with a chance to win was a victory in itself. I also knew that competing was a risk. It always has been and always will be an incredibly dangerous sport. And just like in ski racing, in life we take risks. We dream. We love. We jump. And sometimes we fall. Sometimes we get our hearts broken. Sometimes we don’t achieve the dreams we knew we could have. But that is also the beauty of life: we can try. I have tried. I have dreamed. I have jumped. I hope that if you learn anything from my journey, it is that you all have the courage to dare. Life is too short not to take risks. Because the’only failure in life is not trying. I believe in you, just as you have believed in me”.

Transported by helicopter to the hospital first in Cortina, then to Treviso, she was operated on twice to stabilize the fracture, and will also have to undergo more surgery in the coming days. A real ordeal. The champion’s father, Alan Kildow, speaking to the Associated Press was adamant about the future of his daughter’s career. “She is 41 years old and this is the end of her career. There will be no more ski racing for Lindsey Vonn as long as I have a say”.

Alan stood by the champion, who underwent two surgeries for a fractured femur, and spent the night in his daughter&#8217s hospital room. Also with him are his brother and two sisters. “She always has someone with her, or even more people, we will stay here as long as she is here”.

“She is a very strong person. She knows physical pain. She understands the situation she is in and can handle it” said Alan Kildow, who preferred not to go into details. “He is handling the situation better than I expected. She is getting all the best possible medical care here, she is being looked after very well, the U.S. Olympic Committee and the U.S. ski team have a first-rate doctor for her. She is in very good hands, even here in Italy”.