Lindsey Vonn has shown breathtaking performances since her comeback. This silences all critics. Nevertheless, the US-American is disappointed by the nasty attacks from the alpine family.
Even athletes who have embodied absolute world class for many years often fail in their attempt at a successful comeback. The 41-year-old Lindsey Vonn is an exception in this regard. The US-American confidently leads the downhill standings in the Alpine Ski World Cup and has already celebrated two victories.
No one could have expected this when Vonn had to end her career in 2019 due to great pain. Meanwhile, she looks back on the interim end of her career with mixed feelings.
Lindsey Vonn impresses with her comeback
“It didn’t go the way I wanted it to, but it was still pretty damn good, considering I had no collateral ligament in my left knee, skied with two braces, and could barely walk,” Vonn, who won World Championship bronze in her last race, told the Süddeutsche Zeitung.
Vonn goes through a difficult time: “My sun has set”
What followed was the difficult start to normal life. “In skiing, everything is clear: either you’re fast or you’re not. You win or you don’t. If your time lights up green, you were good – or red, then you were bad. Life is different,” she explained.
“There are phases that can be compared to the grief after a death. But I always had a different picture. Skiing was my sun – everything in my life revolved around it, like the planets,” she gave metaphorical insights into her emotional world.
“My sun had set. I know many athletes who have failed to find a new sun,” Vonn explained. When skiing, one experiences “adrenaline, challenge, and kick” – but “everything is gone” when one stops.
Vonn quickly realized that she had to seek help. “Some people then seek this feeling in other things, some in unhealthy ways. I knew I had to choose the healthy way. That’s why I went to therapy,” she explained.
Partial knee prosthesis brings the turning point
While Vonn was working on reshaping her life after sports, the surgical implantation of a partial knee prosthesis brought an unexpected turn.
“Suddenly I could do exercises in the weight room that I had done when I was 20 (years old),” she was surprised by the positive development. “Eventually I thought: If everything works, why not ski,” she recalls.
In the time after her career ended, she could hardly pursue her favorite sport privately: “It got worse year after year. In the end, I practically only skied on one leg.”
Vonn defends herself against critics: “Disrespectful”
When Vonn decided to be the first female ski racer with a partial prosthesis to return to the World Cup, the response was rather negative.
“I was prepared for people to ask if it was smart. What I found disrespectful were the personal attacks,” she said, disappointed. Among others, Franz Klemm said she was “nuts,” while Pirmin Zurbriggen surmised that Vonn was suffering from “no longer being a champion.”
Vonn is particularly hurt that people from the ski family reacted this way. “These are my people. They have experienced the same things as me, victories, defeats, falls. When they say something like that, it hurts a lot,” she admitted.
But she didn’t come back because her “life would have been empty.” “These people ultimately have no idea who I am,” she criticized.
Less criticism for Hirscher – this is what Vonn says about it
That the reactions to Marcel Hirscher’s comeback plans were much more positive bothers her little today.
“Perhaps just because I’m a bit older than him. But no matter. It says a lot that since my second place at the World Cup final last season, no one has said anything anymore,” she explained with satisfaction.
Ultimately, she had to deal with criticism throughout her entire career. “I know that. And I’m not the one who has to regret her words,” she made clear.
Vonn feels no more pressure
Vonn will go medal hunting one last time at the Winter Olympics before finally ending her career at the end of the season. The 2010 Olympic champion no longer feels any pressure.
“I’ve already shown how fast I can be. But I still have something to give to this sport and want to end my second career on my terms, in a place I love. I feel like I’ve already won,” she says, entering the final chapter of her career with a good feeling.