Winter Olympics: Lindsey Vonn says she will race with ruptured ACL in left knee | Sport-others News

Despite the agony of an injury that used to be a career-ended for high-performance athletes back in the day, Vonn said she was “confident” of competing. She returned to skiing on Tuesday, with barely three days of physical therapy to prop up her injured leg.

Vonn’s first race comes on Sunday in the women’s downhill. She also plans on competing in super-G and the new team combined event. The opening women’s downhill training session is scheduled for Thursday.

“My intention is to race everything,” Vonn said at a press conference.

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   ACL injuries explained

   What is an ACL rupture? How does it occur?

   The ACL, or anterior cruciate ligament, connects the femur, or thighbone, to the tibia, or shinbone. A rupture is a tear in the ligament that typically occurs in sports that involve quick changes in direction, such as basketball, soccer and skiing.

   Athletes typically hear a loud “pop” in the knee, which immediately gives out, followed by significant swelling.

   How bad is Vonn’s injury?

   A ruptured ACL plus damage to the meniscus — a piece of rubbery cartilage that acts as a shock absorber between the femur and the tibia — is considered a severe injury, said Dr. Mia Hagen, a sports medicine surgeon at UW Medicine in Seattle.

   It’s often treated with surgery within months of the injury, according to guidelines from the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons. It can take nine months to a year to recover after surgery.

   “Some people can return earlier, but others never return to their sport of injury,” Hagen said.

   How can she ski with a ruptured ACL?

   Vonn will rely on an external knee brace — and on her sheer physicality, Logan said.

   “Skiing is possible with a ruptured ACL,” she said. “It really relies on our quad strength, our hip strength and our neuromuscular control.”

   How could the injury affect her performance?

   If Vonn develops significant swelling or excess fluid in the knee joint, it could affect her power, strength and edge control, or the ability to manage the angle of the skis relative to the snow, Logan said. But if she’s able to control those factors, she could still be competitive.

   “For an elite alpine skier like Lindsey is, to perform at an Olympic event, it’s still possible,” she said.

   — The Associated Press

A report in The Associated Press noted that she did not appear to be limping as she entered and exited a news conference.

“My knee is not swollen, and with the help of a knee brace, I am confident that I can compete on Sunday,” Vonn said. “And as long as there’s a chance, I will try . . . I will do everything in my power to be in the starting gate.”

Approximately 2,200 doping tests are expected to be conducted during the 2026 Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics. (Photo: AP)

The 41-year-old American skiier, who has a track record of gruesome injuries, had missed the 2014 Sochi Olympics. She also has a history of competing with injuries and winning medals. Like at the 2019 world championships, where she competed with injuries but took bronze in downhill. At the 2010 Games, Vonn had suffered a bruised shin but competed after treating the injury with topfen cheese (applying the cheese to the offending area to reduce swelling) before winning gold in downhill.

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“I’ve been in this position before. I know how to handle it,” she said. “I feel a lot better now than I did in 2019 . . . And I still got a medal there with no LCL and three tibial plateau fractures. So, like I said, this is not an unknown for me. I’ve done this before.”

Andrea Panzeri, the chief physician for the Italian Winter Sports Federation, said numerous athletes have competed at elite level with a torn ACL and other severe knee issues.

(With inputs from AP)