The sports world collectively held its breath when U.S. alpine skier Lindsey Vonn suffered a brutal crash in the women’s downhill at the 2026 Milan Cortina Olympics. Vonn, who was competing in this year’s Games on a torn left ACL, had one final shot at taking home gold in the event she triumphed in over 15 years ago, but within seconds of the start of her run, disaster struck.
Vonn was racing past her fourth gate when her right ski pole appeared to snag the gate at the crest of a jump, sending her off-balance and causing her body to twist sideways mid-air. Vonn crashed violently into the snow before getting airlifted to a nearby hospital; it was later reported that she had broken her leg, an injury that required surgery.
