“For now I feel great, and I’m very thankful for that,” Vonn said
Credit: Michael Le Brecht II/USTA via Getty
NEED TO KNOW
- Lindsey Vonn said she’s “trying to get as strong as possible” as she needs to undergo another surgery
- “And once I get my ACL, then I’ll have another long road ahead of me, but for now I feel great, and I’m very thankful for that,” Vonn said at the US Open blue carpet
- Vonn told PEOPLE her summer has been “a lot of rehab” and “a lot of recovery”
Lindsey Vonn still has a long way to go in her recovery after a horrific crash in the Winter Olympics.
As Vonn, 41, walked the blue carpet on the opening night of the US Open on Sunday, Aug. 30, the gold medalist told TNT Sports she still has “another surgery” to undergo after suffering a complex tibia fracture just 13 seconds into her run in the women’s downhill final during the 2026 Olympics in Cortina d’Ampezzo, Italy.
“So, I’m trying to get as strong as possible, and once I get my ACL, then I’ll have another long road ahead of me, but for now I feel great, and I’m very thankful for that,” Vonn added.
Credit: Screengrab by IOC via Getty
PEOPLE also spoke to Vonn on the blue carpet on Sunday, where she said her summer has been “a lot of rehab” and “a lot of recovery.”
“But I’m finally doing better,” she said. “I’m able to play tennis yesterday and that was a really big day for me. So it’s coming along, slowly but surely.”
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When asked how she feels about returning to “work” once she’s completely recovered, Vonn said skiing “is never work” for her. “I’ve never worked a day in my life. I think that skiing is, in general, with my friends and family, it’s one of the best things that you can do, being outdoors without your phone, in nature. So I look forward to being able to do that.”
Vonn crashed in the Olympics — on a freshly torn ACL — when she caught her pole on a course flag, causing her to lose control and flip through the air. Medics quickly tended to her, placing her on a stability board and loading Vonn onto a helicopter, where she was airlifted to a hospital. She’s already undergone five surgeries to stablize her leg.
Credit: Daniel Kopatsch/VOIGT/Getty
Since her accident, Vonn has been documenting her recovery on social media. Just three weeks after the crash, she returned to biking, and six weeks after the terrifying fall Vonn was already doing pull-ups in the gym, despite being on crutches.
In July, she walked the red carpet at the 2026 ESPYs, where she told PEOPLE “walking is actually still really hard for me.”
“It’s been a very slow process,” Vonn said. “It’s been five months since I’ve been able to actually go to the gym in a somewhat meaningful way. I was in a wheelchair for so long, I was on crutches for so long.”
She added, “It was honestly almost three and a half months that I was unable to walk unassisted. I got very emotional when I was able to walk on my own.”
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