'My Olympic dream did not finish': Lindsey Vonn issues first statement after tibia fracture during ski racing

US ski champion Lindsey Vonn, 41, on Monday issued a first statement after sustaining a “complex tibia fracture” following crashing during the Winter Olympics downhill race and would require “multiple surgeries".

Vonn reflected that her Olympic journey did not conclude as she had imagined. Rather than a fairy-tale or storybook ending, she described it as a reminder of real life, noting that she had dared to dream and worked relentlessly to reach that point.

Posting from a hospital in Italy where she is receiving treatment, Vonn wrote on Instagram, “While yesterday did not end the way I had hoped, and despite the intense physical pain it caused, I have no regrets.”

“My Olympic dream did not finish the way I dreamt it would. It wasn't a story book ending or a fairy tale, it was just life. I dared to dream and had worked so hard to achieve it,” she said.

She also pointed out the razor-thin margins in downhill ski racing, explaining that a matter of just a few inches can separate choosing the right line from suffering a devastating injury.

Vonn’s Alpine skiing teammate Mikaela Shiffrin, along with 1984 Olympic figure skating gold medalist Scott Hamilton, were among the earliest to express their support, offering their thoughts and prayers.

Breezy Johnson, Vonn’s US teammate who later captured Olympic downhill gold, mentioned elite skiers often feel compelled to race despite fragile physical conditions, calling that mindset a kind of “madness” shared at the highest level. As per AFP, she noted, “It can hurt you so badly but you keep coming back.”

On Monday, International Ski Federation president Johan Eliasch addressed Vonn’s choice to take part in the downhill, saying, “This has to be decided by the individual athlete.”

He stressed that her crash was a case of extreme misfortune, adding, “What is also important for people to understand is that the accident that she had yesterday, she was incredibly unlucky, one in a thousand.” Eliasch also emphasised the inherent risks of the sport, saying, “This is something which is part of ski racing and it’s a dangerous sport.”

Her father says 'this is the end of her career’

Meanwhile, her father Alan Kildow said in a phone interview with AP that Vonn’s racing career was over and that she would not compete again, adding that he was firmly opposed to any return to the sport.

“She’s 41 years old and this is the end of her career. There will be no more ski races for Lindsey Vonn, as long as I have anything to say about it," he stated.

Kildow, along with the rest of Vonn’s family, including her brother and two sisters, has been by her side as she receives treatment at a hospital in Treviso after crashing in Cortina on Sunday and being airlifted from the course, the report noted.