Lindsey Vonn still has major issues in both of her legs.
(Rob Kim via Getty Images)
Five months later, Lindsey Vonn is still recovering her horrific crash at the Winter Olympics. And it sounds like she has plenty of recovery still to go.
Appearing on “SportsCenter” on Friday, the former Olympic gold medalist provided an update on her condition from an injury that she has said nearly forced the amputation of her left leg. That leg is apparently still missing an ACL, which was torn in her last downhill before the Olympics, and it’s not even her biggest issue right now:
“My left leg is actually healing really nicely. I still have no ACL, so I need to get the metal out and fix that. But yeah, my right ankle’s been the problem child. It’s still broken, but it doesn’t hurt that much.
Vonn has shown her progress on social media in the months since crashing out in Italy, and also hasn’t ruled out a return to competition when she’s fully functional again.
That doesn’t mean any of this has been pleasant for her, though. Injuries were a regular issue for her during her career, but not on the level of what she’s dealing with now:
“I’ve learned a lot about patience. I thought I knew something about it, but it really tested me in so many ways. I felt like I was working so hard but the progress was so slow. The bones don’t heal the same way that ligaments do and I wasn’t quite used to that.
“I was retired for six years and I’ve been through a lot of injuries in the past. I know what it’s like to come back and where I need to be mentally to get there, but this is obviously different. It’s a much longer rehab process. The pain was substantially more than I’ve ever had in the past.”
While rehabbing at her home in Utah, Vonn has still been out and about. She appeared at the Met Gala in May without crutches and turned up at the ESPYs earlier this week to present the Muhammad Ali Sports Humanitarian Award to Stephen Curry. She did Friday’s “SportsCenter” interview from Fanatics Fest in New York, where she participated in a panel alongside Tom Brady, Serena Williams, James Harden and Candace Parker about owning stakes in women’s sports teams (she is a minority owner of the NWSL’s Utah Royals).
Advertisement
Vonn has been frank about these circumstances, both before and after the injury. Returning to competitive skiing at the age of 41 alone was a bold move, but then she tore her ACL while preparing for Milano Cortina and decided to compete in the Olympics anyway.
She said not long after the crash that she knew the risks and has no regrets.
