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American ski star Lindsey Vonn was airlifted from a World Cup race in Switzerland on Friday after a horrific crash during her final race, jeopardizing her return to the Olympics just a week before the scheduled start of the Milan-Cortina Games.
Vonn, who made a surprising return to the sport last season after nearly six years away from ski racing, appeared to lose control while attempting a jump in her final run at the World Cup race in Crans-Montana.
Lindsey Vonn holds her left knee after crashing during the women’s World Cup downhill race in Crans-Montana, Switzerland, on Jan. 30, 2026. (Jean-Christophe Bott/Keystone via AP)
The 40-year-old Olympic gold medalist, a favorite at this month’s Games, clutched her left knee and winced in pain. She limped into a medical tent to be evaluated before being airlifted off the field in a harness.
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“Lindsey Vonn fell on the downhill of Crans Montana and is being evaluated,” the U.S. Ski Team said in its only update on Vonn.
International Ski and Snowboard Federation CEO Urs Lehmann told reporters at the race that Vonn “injured her knee” but did not speculate on the extent of the injury and what it might mean for her participation in the Olympics.
Lindsey Vonn is airlifted to a hospital after suffering an injury following a crash during her race in the women’s downhill race at the FIS Alpine Ski World Cup in Crans-Montana, Switzerland, on Jan. 30, 2026. (REUTERS/Denis Balibouse)
“I don’t know if he is really heavy and (if) he won’t miss the Olympics. Let’s wait what the doctors say.”
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Vonn’s trainer, Aksel Lund Svindal, told Reuters that Vonn was being evaluated at a hospital.
“She’s in some pain so it’s best to get some checks done, the physio did some checks and they seemed fine but there were things I wasn’t 100 per cent sure about so it was good to get it checked out (at the hospital).”
Several competitors also crashed amid what they called difficult conditions. Nina Ortlieb of Austria and Marte Monsen of Norway crashed before Vonn took her race. Frenchman Romane Miradoli said that “you can’t see it” and added that the course was “with potholes everywhere.”
Lindsey Vonn reacts after crashing during the women’s downhill race of the 2025-2026 FIS Alpine Ski World Cup in Crans-Montana, Switzerland, on January 30, 2026. (Fabrice COFFRINI / AFP via Getty Images)
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Vonn is scheduled for her first Olympic event in women’s downhill on February 8. She is also scheduled to compete in the super G event and the new combined team event.
