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Stephen Curry has missed three games for the Golden State Warriors with a knee injury. It sounds like he will be missing at least two more.

Warriors head coach Steve Kerr indicated to reporters Saturday that Curry is likely to sit out until after the upcoming All-Star break. At the very least, he was out for that night’s game against the Los Angeles Lakers and is considered doubtful for a clash with the Memphis Grizzlies on Monday.

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“I think there’s a good chance he doesn’t play until after the break,” Kerr said. “We’re just going to take it day-by-day, but [Monday], he’s doubtful.

The Grizzlies game is one of two games the Warriors have before the All-Star break, with the other being a home game against the San Antonio Spurs on Wednesday. Golden State’s first game of the second half is Feb. 19 against the Boston Celtics.

That means the Warriors will have to continue proceeding heavily shorthanded. Jimmy Butler remains out for the season with a torn ACL, while past contributors Jonathan Kuminga and Buddy Hield are now members of the Atlanta Hawks. They were dealt at the trade deadline in exchange for big man Kristaps Porzingis, who has been out since early January with an Achilles injury.

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Kerr said Porzingis will remain out until after the All-Star break.

“He got a workout in today with Rick so we’ll see where it goes from here,” Kerr said. “I think the plan is he’ll be in the Bay all of All-Star break and he’ll play after All-Star break.”

The Warriors entered Saturday in eighth place in the Western Conference at 28-24.

With the game tied and less than a minute to go Saturday night in the Dean Smith Center, Duke forward Cameron Boozer knocked the ball loose from a driving Seth Trimble.

Boozer didn’t take advantage, missing a layup on the other end.

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And Trimble, a senior North Carolina captain who broke a bone in his left forearm during a weight room accident earlier this season, got one more chance for a defining moment in a historic regional matchup that had been split evenly over its past 120 iterations.

The guard swished a go-ahead, last-second 3-pointer that caused bedlam.

Fans stormed the court, only to find out there were actually 0.4 seconds remaining in the game.

All of them had to return to their seats, and equipment staff anxiously cleared the hardwood of debris — except the Blue Devils’ ensuing inbound heave didn’t change the 71-68 outcome, the largest comeback win for UNC over Duke in the last 25 years.

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The No. 14 Tar Heels (19-4, 7-3 ACC) trailed by as many as 13 points, and their faithful celebrated the come-from-behind victory again after the buzzer sounded a second time.

Jon Scheyer said afterward that Duke staff members were punched in the face during the game-ending frenzy.

A motivated Caleb Wilson, who revealed to Andscape in the lead-up to the rivalry showdown that Duke stopped talking to him in the highly touted forward’s recruitment, logged 17 of UNC’s 29 first-half points and finished with 23. Boozer, another top-five NBA Draft prospect, totaled 24 points and 11 rebounds.

Trimble, the hero who gave the Tar Heels their first lead of the night with less than a second left, collected 16 points.

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No. 4 Duke (21-2, 10-1) was in the driver’s seat for most of the game.

It sliced through UNC’s defense with well-timed cuts in the opening minutes. One of those helped fuel a 10-0 Blue Devils run that staked them to an 18-5 lead, as center Patrick Ngongba II whipped a pass to wing Dame Sarr, who then dunked.

Wilson didn’t get many touches early, and he didn’t score until the 13:18 mark in the first half. But his drought-ending turnaround jumper set up a pretty up-and-under that gave the Tar Heels a shot in the arm.

UNC doubled Boozer early and often. His first points, and shot, came on a tip-in close to 8:30 into the game.

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After Wilson scored eight straight points for the Tar Heels, wing Jonathan Powell drilled a 3-pointer to pull his team back within six points of the Blue Devils, making it a 22-16 game.

Wilson tacked on another UNC triple, and, following two quick fouls, Boozer took a seat on the bench with 9:33 left before intermission and the Tar Heels building what would be a 9-0 surge.

He sat for less than two minutes, though, and Duke held onto its lead down the stretch of the first half, even restoring a double-digit advantage, first with a 3 from Boozer and then with another from his twin brother, Cayden Boozer.

Having shot a mere 9 of 27, or 33%, from the floor and accounting for just 11 of the game’s 33 rebounds across the first 20 minutes of action, UNC found itself down 41-29 at the break. Center Henri Veesaar came in averaging 16.8 points and nine rebounds per game yet went scoreless with two rebounds in the first half.

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To start the second half, Wilson picked up where he left off, knocking down a tough jumper over Cameron Boozer, whom Wilson notably swatted for a highlight-reel block in the first half.

Then Wilson used a jab step to set the stage for a left-handed layup. While his clinic continued, so did Duke’s lead, as Caleb Foster and, later, Sarr poured in 3-pointers.

But Veesaar’s first points, followed by Jarin Stevenson’s second 3-pointer of the second half, decreased the Tar Heels’ deficit to five. That sequence jumpstarted a flurry of offense on both ends.

UNC and Duke traded buckets up until the half’s second media timeout, with the Tar Heels’ effort level noticeably higher than it was at the beginning of the game.

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The scoring slowed in the subsequent minutes. Isaiah Evans blocked Wilson, and Boozer netted his second triple, putting the Blue Devils up 62-53.

UNC didn’t go away. Derek Dixon sank a 3 that ignited the arena.

He made one more less than four minutes later, and Veesaar followed to tie the game at 68.

Veesaar bounced back from a quiet first half with 13 second-half points and the defense that shut down Boozer on his potential game-winning drive.

Then Trimble etched his name in UNC lore.

No. 14 North Carolina came back from 13 points down, and Seth Trimble drilled the 3-pointer of his life to defeat No. 4 Duke 71-68 on Saturday night in the Dean Smith Center.

What followed was mayhem: two court storms, one when Tar Heels fans thought the game was over, and the second after the final 0.4 seconds ticked off the clock.

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For UNC, it was joyous.

For Duke, it was painful — emotionally and, according to Jon Scheyer, physically, too.

The Blue Devils’ head coach told reporters after the loss that Duke staff members were punched in the face during the game-ending frenzy.

“[But] I got staff members that got punched in the face. My family pushing people away, trying to not get trampled. That’s not what this game is about. You give them all the credit in the world. It’s not about the game, but obviously that was a scary ending — and this rivalry is not about that.”

UNC athletic director Bubba Cunningham publicly apologized and said that he personally apologized to Scheyer after the game.

“When they rushed the court, a number of people got knocked over,” Cunningham said, per The Fayetteville Observer’s Rodd Baxley. “But then we had to clear the court again. So when we normally have something like just rushing the court and the game is over, we do have a line by the benches to get people off safely.

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“… Obviously, if somebody got injured, that’s just really, really disappointing. We’ll do the best we can to make sure that doesn’t happen, but, again, my apologies to Duke for that.”

This isn’t the first time the 38-year-old Scheyer has been outspoken about a court storming.

In fact, he called for the celebration’s ban just about two years ago.

At the time, Scheyer was in the second season of his now-four-season tenure as the head coach of his alma mater, which he helped win a national title for as a guard in 2010.

Duke had just been upset by Wake Forest, and star forward Kyle Filipowski injured his knee amid the court storming chaos.

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“When are we going to ban court stormings?” Scheyer said postgame on Feb. 24, 2024.

“When I played, at least it was 10 seconds and then they would run on the floor,” he added. “Now, the buzzer doesn’t even go off and they’re running on the floor. This has happened to us a bunch this year.”

Scheyer was asked Saturday night if he still feels like court storming should be banned.

“I think court storming is fine, I don’t have any issue with court storming,” he said, per The Associated Press. “Just shouldn’t have people getting punched in the face. Shouldn’t put our players in position where they’re face-to-face with people who can do anything at that time. It just takes one reaction. Even today, I had to push people away just to try to protect our players.”

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Scheyer added, according to the AP: “They won, they should celebrate. “They want to court storm, court storm. But just let’s get our guys off safely, that’s it. That’s where I’m at with that.”

While Saturday’s double court storm caught the public’s eye, given the grand stage Duke-UNC provides, it’s happened before.

Actually, just last week, UCF’s court storm took tries. The first time, fans were herded back to their seats after officials determined that then-No. 11 Texas Tech was due two free throws because of a last-second foul.

After those attempts, the buzzer sounded once more, and the pandemonium resumed.

The James Harden era of the Cleveland Cavaliers began with a close win over one of the worst teams in the NBA on Saturday.

The Cavaliers came back to beat the Sacramento Kings, in Harden’s debut with the team after a trade deadline move from the Los Angeles Clippers. Harden finished the game with 23 points on 7-of-13 shooting, with 15 of those points coming in the fourth quarter.

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Harden made his mark when Cleveland was down 121-116 with fewer than four minutes to go. He made 3-pointers on back-to-back possessions to put his team ahead, and also made four free throws in the final 30 seconds to put the game away.

It had been previously shaping up to be a rough debut for the 11-time All-Star. The Cavaliers’ defense in particular looked like it needed work with Harden getting his first minutes in the system, but big nights from Donovan Mitchell (35 points) and Jarrett Allen (29 points) helped offset those struggles.

Travis Scott was excited, at least.

Harden’s time with the Clippers ended abruptly last week, when the team sent him to Cleveland in exchange for fellow All-Star guard Darius Garland. Harden spent two and a half seasons in Los Angeles, but a disappointing first half of the season led the Clippers to revamping the supporting cast around Kawhi Leonard.

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In Cleveland, Harden joined a franchise currently in playoff position, but a step behind their 64-win season last year. He brings a lengthy history as one of the NBA’s top offensive engines and forms a dynamic backcourt with Mitchell, though with some overlapping skill sets (an issue with Garland as well).

The real question is if Harden can overcome a track record of underperformance come playoff time. That answer is months away, so all he can do for now is focus on getting up to speed with his sixth NBA team.

41-year-old Lindsey Vonn was already making headlines when she decided to come out of retirement to compete at the 2026 Winter Games in Milan Cortina, Italy, but she’s making even bigger news now that she’ll be competing with a torn ACL. Vonn was injured in a crash while training in Switzerland last week, but despite her injury, she’s dead-set on remaining in the competition. Vonn will take to the slopes this Sunday, Feb. 8, for the women’s downhill race, the event that earned her a gold medal at the 2010 Olympics. Assuming Vonn is healthy, she’s also scheduled to compete in the women’s Super-G race on Feb. 12.

Here’s how to watch Lindsey Vonn compete in women’s downhill at this year’s games, along with competition schedules for the rest of Team USA. While every race will stream on Peacock, some will also be broadcast on NBC and USA Network. (To see specific air times, check out the official NBC Olympics broadcast schedule and toggle your search to “TV Only.”) Here’s a rundown of how to watch every Alpine skiing event at the 2026 Winter Games.

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Want to learn even more about every event at this year’s Winter Games? Here’s a guide to everything you need to know about Milan Cortina 2026.

How to watch Lindsey Vonn compete in the women’s downhill race at the 2026 Winter Olympics

Dates Sunday, Feb. 8

Times: 5:30 a.m. ET (live on Peacock and USA), re-air at 9:20 a.m. and 10:45 p.m. (on NBC)

Location: Tofane Ski Centre, Cortina d’Ampezzo

TV channels: NBC, USA

Streaming: Peacock, DirecTV, and more

Where can I stream Alpine skiing at the 2026 Winter Olympics?

Lindsay Vonn’s race will stream live at 5:30 a.m. ET this Sunday on Peacock.

Where to watch Alpine skiing on TV

Lindsay Vonn’s downhill race coverage will air live on USA and re-airs later on NBC at 9:20 a.m. and again after the Super Bowl at 10:45 p.m. You can stream USA and NBC on DirecTV, Hulu + Live TV and more. For specific live broadcast times, make sure to check out the official NBC Olympics broadcast schedule and toggle your search to “TV Only.”

LIVIGNO, Italy — It was devastating to watch, even more brutal to hear.

For a nation that had become enraptured in Lindsey Vonn’s comeback story and the norm-defying attempt to win an Olympic medal without an ACL in her left knee, the helpless cries of pain as she lay on her back and as the mountain fell silent will be hard to erase from memory.

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Downhill skiing is often breathtaking. It is sometimes gruesome. And for the second time in nine days, the images of an American sports heroine being strapped to a board and lifted into a helicopter churned the stomach.

But that’s skiing down a mountain at 80 miles per hour. That’s the risk Vonn signed up for when she decided to compete in an Olympics nine days after an ACL tear during a different competition in Switzerland. That’s what happens sometimes when you go for it.

And that’s exactly what Vonn did.

We may never know for sure, but Vonn’s knee may not have even been the culprit for crashing just 13 seconds into her run. If anything, the chain of events that led to her breakdown Sunday started by taking a highly aggressive line into a curve with all her weight shifted to the right — not the injured left leg. Instead, it was her right pole getting tangled with the gate that threw her off balance, launching her into the air, onto her stomach as she hit the snow and then onto her back as she slid several more feet.

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Just like that, it was over. And awful.

Like clockwork, there will undoubtedly be detractors who say Vonn shouldn’t have tried something so dangerous, so audacious.

But Vonn, 41, has lived her entire life audaciously. She also knows more about what can happen on a ski slope, for better and worse, than the rest of us put together.

She understood what could happen. She deserved the chance. And now, only she can answer whether the consequences for her body were worth it.

It’s not our business.

Was it sickening to see play out in real time? Of course. But when we turn on a sporting event, especially in the Winter Olympics, we are not guaranteed an experience free of discomfort.

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Many of these sports are dangerous. Usually, the athletes make them look easy. Sometimes we take for granted their tolerance for risk.

But this one slaps us all in the face — not just because it’s one of the most accomplished winter sport athletes in the world but because her pain, as it played out on television for millions of people, connects deeply to our own sense of fear and mortality.

Yes, this injury will cast a pall over these Olympics. How can it not? What we watched Sunday wasn’t just sports, it was a microcosm of life. At some point, no matter how invincible we might feel, it can all change in an instant.

Vonn had no doubt she could do it. Her training runs were fine. She spent part of Saturday beefing with detractors on social media, oozing the kind of confidence that made you realize she wasn’t just there to glide down a hill.

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She was all-in. Maybe to her detriment.

Some will say it was all a delusion, that doctors shouldn’t have given her the green light, that she should have given her spot in the field to a younger, healthier American.

Stop.

Are you really going to tell one of the legends of the sport, someone who came out of retirement and almost immediately re-established herself one of the best in the world, that she can’t have this chance? Please.

I asked downhill ski racer Bryan Bennett about that notion Saturday after his final Olympic run.

“She’s won Cortina I don’t know how many times,” he said.  “She understands that downhill. Her equipment’s obviously been in a good place. If she can just hold it together for one run … I don’t think she has to risk incredibly. It’s not like she has to do anything crazy special.”

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Perhaps one day, after the injuries heal, Vonn will tell us whether that’s what cost her. For now, we can only go off what we saw on television — and what it looked like was an all-time skiing talent trying desperately, maybe too desperately, to win a race the rest of us just wanted her to finish.

But our feelings don’t matter.

Vonn has crashed before, blown out her knee before, felt pain few of us can fathom before. She knew it could happen again and tried anyway.

She went for it. Who are we to second-guess?

MILAN — An American pumped her fist and waved to the crowd after skiing across the finish line with the fastest time in the women’s downhill. It just wasn’t the one who has received endless media coverage over the past week for bravely trying to compete on one good leg.

Breezy Johnson won Olympic gold on Sunday, attacking so fearlessly that she managed to overcome getting off her line on a series of turns in the middle of the course. Johnson’s winning margin over second-place Emma Aicher of Germany was just four-hundredths of a second — 1:36.10 to 1:36.14 — less time than the snap of the fingers or the blink of an eye. Italy’s Sofia Goggia took bronze.

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Johnson joins Lindsey Vonn as the only Americans to ever win gold in women’s Olympic downhill.

“I had a good feeling about today,” she said. “I sort of still can’t believe it yet, so I don’t know when it will sink in yet. I’ll let you know.”

But what should have been a moment of jubilation for Johnson turned bittersweet when Vonn’s bid for Olympic glory went horribly wrong. Vonn, 41 years old and famously skiing on a torn ACL suffered just nine days earlier, nicked a gate with her right pole a few seconds into her run, got off balance and crashed in a twisted heap.

As Vonn was crying out in pain on the snow while medical officials rushed to help her, Johnson shook her head in apparent disbelief and buried her face in her right hand. When TV cameras flashed to Johnson later in the competition, she remained subdued, even as it became clear the gold medal was hers.

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“My heart goes out to her,” Johnson said later when asked about Vonn. “I hope it’s not as bad as it looked.”

By the start of the medal ceremony, however, Johnson appeared more emotionally ready to celebrate what she had achieved. She raised both arms in the air as she climbed atop the podium and later gleefully pointed at the gold medal around her neck.

For Johnson, Olympic gold is the product of a turbulent journey wrought with difficult moments and overwhelming successes. Johnson, 30, has long been heralded as the next in line behind Vonn and Mikaela Shiffrin, but there have been times when it appeared she might not be able to live up to that heir apparent status.

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Johnson had to watch the Beijing Olympics from afar four years ago because of injuries that she sustained in a devastating crash during a training run in Cortina, site of Sunday’s downhill, of all places. Before that, she had been skiing as fast as any downhill racer in the world and appeared to be in position to contend for a medal.

Worse yet, Johnson was suspended for the entire 2023-24 season as a result of what the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency called a whereabouts violation. Athletes are required to register their whereabouts so that anti-doping officials can test them at any time, but Johnson missed three tests — in error, she has claimed.

Since she has returned to action, Johnson has increasingly looked like the old Breezy, the one expected to be atop medal podiums. She is the reigning world champion in the women’s downhill and said she arrived at these Olympics feeling “as healthy as I’ve been since I got injured before the last Olympics.”

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It showed.

Since she was the sixth skier down the mountain, Johnson had to wait to see if her leading time would hold up for 30 more racers. TV cameras caught her exhaling theatrically in relief after Aicher had a couple of slight bobbles at the bottom of the course that proved to be the difference between gold and silver.

The third American in the women’s downhill, Jacqueline Wiles, finished fourth to narrowly miss out on a medal.

Johnson’s medal is the first for the United States at these Olympics so far.

All week, she has been overshadowed. Even now, she’s still overshadowed, but she’s an Olympic champion.

The Winter Games have begun in Italy. From the rink to the slopes, a new generation of stars has emerged to chase gold. We’ll keep you connected to all of the thrilling moments and top stories as we track the medal race each day of the Games.

It’s Super Bowl Sunday and Day 2 of the Olympics. Prepare yourselves, sports fans.

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The NFC champion Seattle Seahawks and AFC champion New England Patriots are set to play in Super Bowl LX, an unexpected finale to the NFL season that’s rich with storylines.

In the hours leading up to the big game, though, there will be plenty of intrigue as well. The 2026 Milan Cortina Winter Olympics are picking up speed, and the medal count has already started.

Here are the top five things to be aware of Sunday (on the Italian side):

1. Lindsey Vonn’s unfortunate crash in women’s downhill

Lindsey Vonn’s comeback story was a highlight of these Games, and it reached a heartbreaking end early Sunday, 14 seconds into her run in the women’s Alpine skiing downhill final. Her right ski pole clipped a gate as she came out of her third turn, sending her into a spin and a hard landing that left her prone on the snow and screaming in pain. After receiving medical attention, she was airlifted from the mountain.

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A mere nine days after tearing the ACL in her left knee during a World Cup downhill race in Switzerland, the 41-year-old pursued a second gold medal. All signs pointed toward one of the most gutsy performances in sports history and a great personal trek for Vonn. Before her return, the three-time Olympic medalist spent nearly six years away from ski racing after retiring in 2019.

2. Will U.S. take gold in figure skating team event after Ilia Malinin’s stunning yet imperfect Olympic debut?

Ilia Malinin is one of the biggest stars, regardless of country, in this year’s Olympics. But the 21-year-old U.S. figure skater didn’t have his best stuff in the men’s short program portion of the team event. While still impressive, the “Quad God” wasn’t as technically sound as usual, finishing second behind Japan’s Yuma Kagiyama. Suddenly, Team USA’s gold medal defense in the competition it won four years ago in Beijing isn’t a lock. Granted, the U.S. has the lead in the team event with 44 points, but Japan isn’t far behind with 39. Three events are left, and they’ll take place Sunday: the free skates of the pairs, women and men. With a gold far from guaranteed in the event, the U.S. is rolling with Malinin for the men’s free skate. Even though his individual event is in two days, he’s going back out there to help Team USA.

3. Will U.S. bounce back in mixed doubles curling?

Team USA’s Cory Thiesse and Korey Dropkin stormed out to a 4-0 start in round-robin mixed doubles curling competition before dropping matches to Great Britain and South Korea on Saturday. The second of those defeats arrived in an extra end and in upset fashion, as South Korea’s Kim Seonyeong and Jeong Yeongseok had lost their previous five matches. Thiesse and Dropkin will hope to regain their midweek form Sunday when they face off against Estonia (2-4) and Sweden (4-3). Great Britain’s Jennifer Dodds and Bruce Mouat are the only team to qualify for the playoffs so far.

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4. Ester Ledecká misses chance at history

In non-Team USA news, Czech snowboarder Ester Ledecká pursued a third gold medal, which would have made her the first snowboarder in Olympic history to three-peat an event. However, in the quarterfinals, her 45.87 score finished second to Austria’s Sabine Payer’s 45.71.

Shaun White is the only snowboarder with three Olympic golds to his name, all in halfpipe, but he missed out in 2014 to miss a three-peat. However, Ledecká already had one unprecedented feat to her name with a ski and snowboard gold in 2018. Unfortunately, she couldn’t repeat that feat in 2026 due to distance between venues.

5. More medals

In addition to the above events, medals are set to be handed out in biathlon, cross-country skiing, luge and speed-skating. The best odds for a Team USA in that group might be speed-skating where Casey Dawson faces a deep field. The 25-year-old currently ranks fourth in the world in long distances.

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Sunday, Feb. 8, 2026 (Day 2)

Alpine Skiing

Downhill

• 5:30 a.m.: Women’s final (USA Network)🏅

Biathlon

4 × 6 kilometer relay

• 8:05 a.m.: Mixed final (NBC coverage begins at 8:45 a.m.)🏅

Cross-Country Skiing

20 kilometer skiathlon

• 6:30 a.m.: Men’s final (NBC coverage begins at 7 a.m.)🏅

Curling

Mixed doubles round-robin

• 4:05 a.m.: Norway vs. Czechia, South Korea vs. Estonia (USA Network coverage begins at 4:55 a.m.)

• 8:35 a.m.: Canada vs. Sweden, Great Britain vs. Switzerland, USA vs. Estonia (USA Network), Italy vs. Czechia

• 1:05 p.m.: Italy vs. Great Britain, USA vs. Sweden, Switzerland vs. Norway, Canada vs. South Korea

Figure Skating

Team competition

• 1:30 p.m. Pairs free skate (USA Network)🏅

• 2:45 p.m.: Women’s free skate (USA Network)🏅

• 3:55 p.m.: Men’s free skate (USA Network)🏅

Hockey

Women’s pool play

• 10:40 a.m.: France vs. Sweden

• 3:10 p.m.: Czechia vs. Finland

Luge

Men’s singles

• 11 a.m.: Run 3 (USA Network)🏅

• 12:45 p.m.: Run 4 (USA Network)🏅

Snowboarding

Parallel giant slalom

• 3 a.m.: Men’s and women’s qualifying (USA Network)

• 7 a.m.: Men’s and women’s finals (NBC coverage begins at 7:30 a.m.) 🏅

Big air

• 1:30 p.m.: Women’s qualifying (airs on USA Network at 6:30 p.m.)

Speed Skating

• 10 a.m.: Men’s 5000m (NBC)🏅

Many Olympics fans woke up early to watch Lindsey Vonn pursue a second gold medal in the women’s Alpine downhill final, hoping to see the 41-year-old complete a storybook comeback, one made even more compelling by her competing despite tearing the ACL in her left knee.

Unfortunately, those watching live or catching up as they tuned in early Sunday morning saw the disturbing scene of Vonn crashing after making her third turn and laying prone on the snow as medical personnel attended to her. Eventually, a helicopter arrived to airlift her from the scene, creating the sort of moment no one wants in an athletic competition.

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Video of Vonn’s crash was quickly posted online, with many eager to see what they may have missed on television and more looking to view the accident again, perhaps trying to determine exactly what happened. But photos were soon posted that showed Vonn’s right ski pole clipping the gate coming out of her third turn, which sent her spinning out into a harsh landing.

Naturally, the scene from the Tofane slope in Cortina d’Ampezzo was solemn as a previously festive setting turned pensive and quiet.

Fellow U.S. skier Mikaela Shiffrin had no words to express after Vonn’s crash, but conveyed her feelings of heartache and sympathy through emojis.

Gold medal figure skater Scott Hamilton was among the former Olympians sharing their admiration for Vonn’s spirit in competing through adversity, willing to put herself through the difficulty of fighting with injury to pursue success.

Tennis star Rafael Nadal also passed along encouragement, calling Vonn an “inspiration” and praising her for her perseverance.

Reactions from spectators were also notable, both on site at Cortina and captured from TV. Snoop Dogg was among the famous in attendance showing concern as Vonn received attention on the course.

Reflecting the times we live in where many feel the need to record everything first-hand on their phones, several focused on a spectator who continued to get video while others looked on in worry.

Another aspect of the crash observers dwelled on was the grisly audio of Vonn screaming in pain while she lay prone on the snow after crashing and while she was receiving medical attention. TV networks also struggled with how much to show of Vonn’s collapse and its aftermath while the event was delayed.

Following Vonn’s crash, two sentiments emerged on social media. One was sadness and heartbreak for an inglorious ending to what so many hoped would be an inspirational story.

The other, uglier opinion was that Vonn shouldn’t have competed in this event with such a serious injury, leading toward an inevitable outcome.

Additionally. some commented on the discourse that was developing online, noting the criticism that seemed especially harsh and unfair in the moment while also acknowledging the mentality that motivated Vonn to ski despite her body creating obstacles.

The aftermath of Vonn’s accident brought a variety of reactions that can be expected in virtually any event occurring today on social media, ranging from sympathy to hostility expressed by athletes and celebrities familiar with such experiences, along with nearly anonymous viewers sharing their opinions.

LIVIGNO, Italy — Czech star Ester Ledecka, the two-time defending gold medalist in women’s parallel giant slalom, suffered a shocking defeat Sunday in the quarterfinals and did not make the podium.

Heavily favored to win this event for the third time, Ledecka got out of the starting gate a beat slow and could not make up ground on Austria’s Sabine Payer, ultimately failing to advance by 0.06 seconds.

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The result was particularly surprising given that Ledecka posted the fastest qualifying time for the event by .69 seconds over two runs and was nearly three full seconds faster than Payer.  It’s her first loss in this event since 2023.

The second-favorite for the event, Japan’s Tsubaki Miki, was also eliminated in the quarterfinals.

Instead, it was Ledecka’s countrywoman, Zuzana Maderova, who cruised to the gold medal with a .83-second victory over Payer in the big final. Lucia Dalmasso added another medal for host Italy with a victory over another Italian, Elisa Caffont, for the bronze.

Ledecka became an international fascination in 2018 when she pulled off an unprecedented double, winning a gold medal on both a snowboard and skis, shocking the field in the Super G.

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Because of this year’s schedule and the long distance between Livingo and the women’s Alpine events in Cortina, Ledecka essentially chose competing in PSG over the downhill. She was trying to join an exclusive club of Olympic athletes like Usain Bolt and Katie Ledecky who have won an event three straight times, but it was not to be.

It’s unclear whether parallel giant slalom will be included in the 2030 Olympic program in the French Alps, as it has been placed under review by the IOC. Viewership of the event, which pits riders in a side-by-side race, is said to be key in whether it survives another Olympic cycle.

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Riders have launched a social media campaign #keepPSGolympic. In a video posted to Instagram, earlier this week, Ledecka said: “It’s an amazing sport, which for sure belongs to the Olympics. My personal opinion doesn’t matter at all, but I just hope that the opinion of the person which will matter will fight for our place because I think we deserve that.”