41-year-old legendary Alpine skier has been hospitalized for her third operation after sustaining injury in the Alpine women’s downhill event at the Milan Cortina Olympics on Sunday, February 8, 2026. The skier accidentally clipped into a pole and crashed into her run. She was screaming in pain, lying in the snow, and was taken to the hospital immediately. Vonn was competing in the event despite struggling with a torn ACL sustained during a World Cup match in January.
On Wednesday, February 11, Vonn released a post on her social media that showed some photos of her from the hospital room. In her photos, Vonn could be seen with her left leg set in an external fixator (a device typically used to stabilize the leg and minimize swelling). Fans from all across wished Vonn her speedy recovery, who mentioned she is making progress from the operation.
In her social media post, she wrote, “I had my 3rd surgery today and it was successful. Success today has a completely different meaning than it did a few days ago. I’m making progress and while it is slow, I know I’ll be ok. Thankful for all of the incredible medical staff, friends, family, who have been by my side and the beautiful outpouring of love and support from people around the world. Also, huge congrats to my teammates and all of the Team USA athletes who are out there inspiring me and me something to cheer for.”
Vonn’s injury journey
Vonn is recognized as one of the accomplished and notable skiers with 84 World Cup victories and three Olympic medals, of which one is gold. She is second all-time behind Mikaela Shiffrin of America.
But besides the achievements, injuries have been a major part of Vonn’s career so far. In 2013, she tore both the ACL and MCL of her right knee and also sustained a fracture in her right leg during a crash at the World Championships. A year later, she again injured her ACL, due to which she missed her chance to compete in the 2014 Winter Olympics.
Again in August 2015, Vonn broke one of her ankles in a crash while performing in New Zealand. Later in February 2016, she sustained fractures in her left knee. Meanwhile, in 2018, she tore her left knee LCL and sustained three fractures on the torn leg after landing in a crash during training. Injuries left her with the decision to announce her retirement in 2019. Vonn, however, announced her comeback to skiing last year after undergoing a successful knee replacement surgery back in April 2024.
