Lindsey Vonn airlifted from course after crash in final downhill before Olympics
Lindsey Vonn crashed out of the final World Cup downhill before the Milano Cortina Winter Olympics on Friday, leaving the American skiing great limping and clutching her left knee as organizers abandoned the race amid worsening conditions.The 41-year-old lost control after landing a jump on the upper section of the course in Crans-Montana, Switzerland, skidding sideways into the safety netting as snow fell steadily and visibility deteriorated.Vonn’s airbag deployed on impact and she remained down for several moments while medical staff attended to her on the piste.Vonn eventually stood and was able to ski away, but did so gingerly.She repeatedly took weight off her left leg, using her poles to steady herself, and stopped several times on the run down to check her knee.
At the finish area she was met by her teammate Jacqueline Wiles, with the two sharing a long embrace before Vonn limped into a medical tent for further evaluation.She was later airlifted from the finish area by helicopter, suspended by a rope as she was transported away across the Swiss Alps.Vonn’s coach this season, the two-time Olympic champion Aksel Lund Svindal, told Reuters, “She has some pain so it’s better to have some checks, the physio did some checks, they seemed OK but there were things he was not 100% sure so it was good to have it checked.”Race officials cancelled the downhill shortly after Vonn’s crash, with three of the first six skiers having fallen in difficult conditions on a course that had already been shortened because of the weather.Austria’s Nina Ortlieb crashed in the same upper section as Vonn but was able to ski away, while Norway’s Marte Monsen hit the nets near the bottom of the course and was taken away on a stretcher with facial injuries.
Romane Miradoli of France, one of the few skiers to complete her run, said visibility was a major issue.“You can’t see, and it’s bumpy everywhere,” she said.Asked whether conditions were dangerous, Miradoli added: “We just couldn’t see well.”Vonn had been the sixth starter and the first of the seeded racers to leave the gate.She was leading at the first checkpoint before landing a jump off balance, lifting her left arm and pole high in an attempt to regain control.
As she tried to brake, she was spun around and slid into the safety fencing.This article includes content provided by Instagram.We ask for your permission before anything is loaded, as they may be using cookies and other technologies.To view this content, click 'Allow and continue'.The crash came exactly one week before the opening ceremony of the Milano Cortina Games, where Vonn is scheduled to compete in the women’s downhill on 8 February.
She is also entered in the super-G and the new team combined event.The women’s alpine events will be held in Cortina d’Ampezzo, a venue where Vonn has enjoyed some of the greatest success of her career, with a record 12 World Cup victories.Any injury at this stage would be a major concern for the United States team and for Olympic organizers, who have billed Vonn as one of the standout stars of the Games.A US Ski and Snowboard spokesperson said Vonn was being evaluated following the fall.Despite the uncertainty, Vonn sought to play down fears that her Olympic bid was over, insisting she still hoped to compete in Cortina.
“I crashed today in the downhill race in Switzerland and injured my left knee,” Vonn wrote on social media,“My Olympic dream is not over,”She added that she was continuing to undergo medical evaluations, saying she was “discussing the situation with my doctors and team” and would continue to undergo further examinations,Vonn has been in outstanding form this season, leading the World Cup downhill standings with five podium finishes from five races, including two victories,Her performances have underpinned an unlikely return to the top of the sport following a partial knee replacement on her right leg less than two years ago.
She came out of retirement last season after nearly six years away from competition and has described her physical condition as the best it has been in years,The fall also revived memories of a career marked by serious injuries,Vonn tore the ligaments in her right knee in a high-speed crash at the 2013 world championships and was airlifted from the course,She suffered further damage the following season and missed the 2014 Sochi Olympics as a result,Over the course of her career she has also broken arms and legs and sustained a concussion.
Despite those setbacks, Vonn remains one of the most decorated skiers in history.She won Olympic downhill gold at the 2010 Vancouver Games, eight years after making her Olympic debut as a teenager in Salt Lake City.Like her US teammate Mikaela Shiffrin, she is among the most successful female World Cup racers of all time.Three training runs for the Olympic downhill are scheduled in Cortina d’Ampezzo from 5–7 February, with the medal race set for the following day.“This is a very difficult outcome one week before the Olympics,” Vonn wrote.
“But if there’s one thing I know how to do, it’s a comeback.It’s not over until it’s over.”Friday’s race in Crans-Montana was due to be the final competitive downhill before Olympic training begins next week, with the first official downhill training run scheduled for Wednesday.The World Cup stop was staged under a subdued atmosphere after a New Year’s Eve bar fire in the resort that killed 40 people and injured more than 100.
Artists can’t buy into these fantasy houses | Brief letters
I always regard the house prices in your fantasy house hunt feature with wry amusement. After all, it is supposed to be fantasy. However, last weekend’s selection made my blood boil (Homes for sale to inspire artists in England – in pictures, 23 January). In 2024, the Guardian reported that the median income of visual artists had dropped to £12,500, a fall of 40% since 2010. Even the most creative accounting is not going to convert this into a mortgage for one of the houses featured
Chinese car firm Chery to open European base in Liverpool
Chinese carmaker Chery is to open a research and development headquarters in Liverpool, in a move that could pave the way for a deal for the British manufacturer Jaguar Land Rover to build its cars.State-owned Chery’s commercial vehicle arm will base the headquarters for its European operations on Merseyside, including research, engineering, and commercial functions.Chery has already made a mark in the UK car market through its Omoda and Jaecoo brands, and it is launching its eponymous brand with an advertising campaign featuring former England footballer Peter Crouch.The UK government has been working on a plan for Jaguar Land Rover (JLR), the country’s biggest automotive manufacturing employer, to build Chery electric vehicles in Britain. The deal was expected to form part of talks during Keir Starmer’s visit to Beijing, although no deal has been announced
Apple reports massive spike in iPhone revenue, particularly in China
Apple released its first quarter earnings on Thursday, exceeding Wall Street’s expectations and seeing its revenue skyrocket 16% from the same time last year.“Apple is proud to report a remarkable, record-breaking quarter, with revenue of $143.8bn,” Tim Cook, the company’s CEO, said in a statement. “iPhone had its best-ever quarter driven by unprecedented demand, with all-time records across every geographic segment.”The tech titan’s reported revenue went far beyond analyst’s forecasts of $138
US regulators open inquiry into Waymo self-driving car that struck child in California
The US’s federal transportation regulator said Thursday it had opened an investigation after a Waymo self-driving vehicle struck a child near an elementary school in southern California last week, causing minor injuries.The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said the child in Santa Monica ran across the street on 23 January from behind a double parked SUV towards the school and was struck by the Waymo autonomous vehicle during normal school drop-off hours. The agency said there were other children, a crossing guard, and several double-parked vehicles in the vicinity.The federal agency is opening a preliminary evaluation to investigate whether the Waymo AV exercised appropriate caution given its proximity to the elementary school during drop-off hours, and the presence of young pedestrians and other potential vulnerable road users. The agency said it plans to examine the vehicle’s “intended behavior in school zones and neighboring areas, especially during normal school pick up/drop off times, including but not limited to its adherence to posted speed limits” and will “also investigate Waymo’s post-impact response”
Sri Lanka v England: Sam Curran takes hat-trick in first men’s T20 international – as it happened
Ah, I was hanging on for the post match presentations but it seems they have been pulled. Time for me to skedaddle then, thanks for your company. Taha’s match report will be along very soon and do join us on Sunday for match number two.The weekend has landed. Goodbye!Handshakes all round, a strange and drawn out match comes to a close
Sam Curran takes hat-trick before Salt eases England to DLS win over Sri Lanka in first T20
It was an England victory set up by the wily, age-old brilliance of Adil Rashid, the vital part of their hopes for a World Cup triumph in the coming weeks. The masterful leg-spinner took three for 19 as Sri Lanka’s batting lineup collapsed in the first of three Twenty20s, losing five wickets for 22 runs.Sam Curran celebrated a late hat-trick, too, as the visitors were set a target of 134 in a 17-overs-a-side contest after rain delayed the start. They were guided by Phil Salt’s 46, but Tom Banton’s 15-ball 29 provided the real thrust, easing the tension in the middle overs.England were just about stumbling over the line as Salt departed in the 15th over, but the rain returned with nine needed off 12, the crowd filtering out before the official decision, Harry Brook’s side lead the series after winning by 11 runs on DLS
Seth Meyers on Minneapolis: ‘Trump is trying to distance himself from the chaos he created’
Blood, butter and boys in luv: BTS’s 20 best songs – ranked!
Post your questions for the Cardigans’ Nina Persson
I’ve read this picture book so many times – but only 25 years later do I really understand it | Lenore Taylor
‘It turned out I had a brain tumour …’ Six standup comics on what spurred them to get on stage
Claire Denis’s Stars at Noon: who knew the end of the world could feel so romantic?