LIVIGNO, Italy — Think Lindsey Vonn isn’t motivated to make history this weekend in the Olympic women’s downhill? Think again.
The 41-year old Vonn, who tore the ACL in her left knee during an accident in Switzerland less than a week ago, posted a short video to her Instagram on Thursday showing off a training regimen that would put most people with two healthy ACLs to shame.
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Set to the soundtrack of Andy Grammer’s “Don’t Give Up On Me,” Vonn’s video includes footage of her doing a series of barbell squats, agility exercises, side lunges and box jumps with a brace on her injured left knee. Her caption included the following message:
“I’m not giving up, working as hard as I can to make it happen! Thank you to my team and everyone for your incredible support. Keep believing.”
The Instagram post echoes what Vonn said during a press conference earlier this week: She plans to be at the starting gate Sunday for the women’s downhill despite the ACL injury.
Orthopedic experts told Yahoo Sports that while Vonn returning this quickly to an Olympic level of competition does not have much precedent, it’s not inconceivable.
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Though the ACL is the main stabilizer in the knee, “what you’re relying on is great eccentric quad strength, hip strength and hip control (plus) external bracing to reduce any of that rotational force,” Dr. Catherine Logan, an orthopedic surgeon at the Joint Preservation Center in Denver who also works with U.S. Ski and Snowboard, told Yahoo Sports. “She can do all those things without an ACL.”
Essentially, while Vonn may risk further damage to her knee, she came out of retirement for this chance at the Olympics. If she feels stable enough on the knee to make it down the hill — and, after multiple knee surgeries across the years, Vonn knows her body well enough to make that call — there is a pathway for her to be competitive in the event.
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Vonn must complete a training run to make the starting field for Sunday’s downhill event, but one of her opportunities was eliminated Thursday when officials in Cortina cancelled training due to heavy snow in the area. It’s unclear what the forecast looks like for Friday and Saturday, but according to the rules of the event there must be one training run before the competition takes place.
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