“Best teammate ever” - Lindsey Vonn heaps praise on AJ Hurt amidst combined event controversy with Mikaela Shiffrin

Lindsey Vonn is competing at the World Championships six years after originally calling time on her career. At the Championships, Vonn has been paired with AJ Hurt for the combined event, and the American recently heaped praise on the youngster, calling her the ‘best teammate ever’. This comes amid Vonn expressing dissatisfaction at not being paired with Mikaela Shiffrin for the combined event.

After suffering a massive crash at the Killington World Cup last year, Shiffrin announced that she would opt out of the combined event at the World Championships to focus on defending her Giant Slalom title. However, the 28-year-old later reversed her decision and stated that she was unable to compete in giant slalom due to PTSD after her crash, and would race the combined event instead.

However, with Mikaela Shiffrin returning to the combined, she was paired with Breezy Johnson instead of Vonn for the event. Despite the pairings being chosen by coaches, Vonn seemed upset at the situation, writing on X that she was ‘not surprised by the decisions made.’

Amidst this, AJ Hurt shared an Instagram story with a funny edit of herself and Lindsey Vonn, which read ‘@lindseyvonnn and I will be ripping it up tomorrow.’ Vonn reshared the story and added:

“Best teammate ever. We are gonna have so much fun tomorrow.”

Via @lindseyvonn on Instagram

Lindsey Vonn expresses disappointment on not being paired with Mikaela Shiffrin

Lindsey Vonn expressed her disappointment at not being paired with Mikaela Shiffrin for the combined event at the World Championships. The American told The Associated Press in a statement:

“I’m excited for Breezy and Mikaela to team up together and I believe they are a great pair. However, I am disappointed in the way it was handled. Despite the lack of communication I am a team player and am looking forward to be partnered with AJ Hurt, who is an amazing young skier.”

According to AP, Vonn had reached out to Shiffrin, who had agreed it would be great to race together. However, Vonn was then told that Shiffrin wasn’t entering the combined event, only for her to learn her compatriot's final decision to race it via Instagram.

The women's combined event of the World Championships is scheduled for Tuesday, February 11, and will feature Lindsey Vonn racing the downhill, as her partner AJ Hurt tackles the slalom.