Industry News
Lindsey Vonn crashed in the super-G at the world championships in Are, Sweden earlier today, straddling a gate mid-air and ending up in the safety nets, reports the AP sports writer. Vonn, however, got up and skied down the hill after being tended to by medical personnel.
- Related: BREAKING NEWS: Lindsey Vonn Will Officially Retire After Two Final Races In Åre, Sweden Next Week
“Everybody, cross your fingers or hold your thumbs. That didn’t look like a nice crash,” said American teammate Mikaela Shiffrin, who won the race. “She went really hard into the fence. Hopefully, she is OK.”
Vonn, the all-time leader in women’s World Cup wins, announced last week that she will retire after racing the super-G and downhill at the worlds.
Losing control in mid-air and skiing through a gate, the panel fitted between the two poles detached and got stuck on Vonn’s boots. When she hit the ground she slid downhill face first, using her hands to keep her head from hitting the snow, then came to a stop when she hit the safety netting. 34-year-old Vonn has been slowed by persistent pain in both of her knees and is slated to bring an end to her career with Sunday’s downhill.
For Mikaela Shiffrin, two-time Olympic champion who is not too far behind Vonn on the all-time wins list, it marked her first major championship medal in a speed event. Shiffrin has been unbeatable in super-G all season, winning all three World Cup super-Gs she entered and leading the discipline standings.
This victory wasn’t without its complications though, Shiffrin veered off-line on the lower section of the course, flailed her arms mid-air to slow down and narrowly cleared the next gate, clipping it with her side. She finished 0.02 seconds ahead of Olympic downhill champion Sofia Goggia of Italy. Corinne Suter of Switzerland was third, 0.05 behind, on a course that was shortened because of strong winds.
