Industry News
It was the picture-perfect day for Lindsey Vonn’s comeback on Saturday, December 21, in St. Moritz, Switzerland, with fresh snow and blue skies. Vonn retired from competitive racing in March 2019, having won 82 World Cup races, four FIS Alpine World Cup Overall season titles, seven World Championship titles, and one Olympic Gold. In October, the 40-year-old ski racer announced her comeback to competitive ski racing after having undergone a successful knee replacement surgery.
Vonn had earlier skied as a forerunner in Beaver Creek, Colorado. The run had served as a trial to see if Vonn was indeed ready to compete in St. Moritz. After having a good run with a solid time, Vonn was on the starting list for Saturday’s Super-G with bib 31, thanks to the wildcard introduced by the International Ski and Snowboard Federation (FIS) in March this year.
Saturday’s race was won by Austria’s Cornelia Hütter, who put down a flawless run. She snatched the victory from local favorite Lara Gut-Behrami, who had been in the lead until then, ahead of Italy’s four-leaved clover of Sofia Goggia, Elena Curtoni, Federica Brignone, and Laura Pirovano, who were all within roughly half a second behind Gut-Behrami. Goggia has had a long-standing history of winning at St. Moritz but was relegated to third on Saturday behind defending Super-G title holder Hütter and Overall Season title holder Gut-Behrami.
Oftentimes, TV stations switch to commercials after the top 30 ski racers have competed, but not today: Lindsey Vonn was waiting in the gates in Bib 31. The crowd on the side of the course had mainly cheered for Swiss and some of the Italian or German skiers but erupted into cheers for legendary Vonn, who put down a solid run without major mistakes. She was aggressive yet cautious, leaving room for improvement yet still fast enough to finish in an impressive 14th place. As the legend skied across the finish line, the crowd screamed louder than it had for Gut-Behrami.
It was the return of a legend, and the smile on her face said it all: this was what she had missed, and she was back to take it all in—the cheers, the waves, the applause, and the adoration. With a time of just 1.18 seconds behind the lead time, this was a showcase of what is still possible for Vonn, who admitted in an interview after the race, “Today is just the first step, and I’m not looking for more. Today, I really needed to get to the finish. I wanted to have a solid result. And that’s exactly what I did.” With Saturday’s solid performance, Vonn managed to silence the naysayers and skeptics. However, Vonn knows there is room for improvement, and she is ready to unleash her full potential later in the season. “There’s definitely a lot that I have left to give. Today was not the day to try to do anything special,” the skiing legend shared after the race. The spectators certainly cannot wait for more of Vonn.
Another top 30 finish came from Team USA’s Tricia Mangan in bib 44, who claimed 25th place, and Keely Cashman in Bib 50, who claimed 30th place, both earning valuable FIS points. Jacqui Wiles, Breezy Johnson, and Allison Mollin finished in 42nd, 45th, and 46th, respectively.
After Sunday’s race at St. Moritz was canceled due to inclement weather, the FIS circuit will go on a Christmas break. After that, races will continue on December 28-29 with a Giant Slalom and a Slalom event at Semmering, Austria. The speed specialists will have a break until January 11-12, when a Downhill and a Super-G race will be held at St. Anton, Austria.
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