Suddenly, the large crowd in Cortina fell silent and competitors hid their faces in their hands. Lindsey Vonn was just over ten seconds into the run when she got stuck in a gate and crashed. She was heard screaming in pain on the television broadcast.
That doesn't look good at all, says Anja Pärson on SVT.
The reason for this is that she corrected the line just before this section. Most skiers have had problems with this particular turn, the former alpine star continues.
Medical personnel took care of the 41-year-old American, who was flown down by helicopter.
It's a sad day, says Vonn's father Alan Kildow to Expressen.
The extent of the injury is unclear, the US national team currently says only that she will undergo examinations.
She's okay, but it will take time, says Anouk Patty, sports director for the US alpine and snowboard national teams, to the AP news agency.
This is a brutal sport, and you have to remember that the competitors throw themselves onto the slopes and go really, really fast.
"Awkward"
Anja Pärson believes that it took too long for Vonn to receive help.
The guy who gets there first is awkward; he doesn't know what to do. You can even hear Lindsey screaming, "I can't get my skis off."
If you've pulled your knees, you want to get help as soon as possible.
The competition was paused for just over 20 minutes. American Breezy Johnson took the gold.
Sent out
Vonn's recovery has been dramatic. Her Olympic dream seemed to be in tatters after her crash in the final downhill race before the Olympics, in Crans-Montana, just over a week ago.
Afterwards, it was determined that Vonn had torn one of her cruciate ligaments. Despite this, she chose to compete in the Olympics - a decision that was ruled out by medical experts.
"A misstep can have significantly greater consequences than for a person with an intact cruciate ligament," wrote Matilda Lundblad, a sports physician and researcher, in a text message to TT this week.
Lindsey Vonn's career has been as successful as it has been plagued by injuries. She retired in 2019 but made a comeback last season after knee surgery.
Born: November 18, 1984 in Saint Paul, Minnesota, USA.
Championship achievements: Olympic gold in downhill in 2010, World Cup gold in downhill and in super-G in 2009, two Olympic bronzes, three World Cup silvers, three World Cup bronzes.
Alpine World Cup victories: 84.
Current: Crashed in the Olympic downhill race in Cortina after starting with a torn cruciate ligament in one knee.
