Lindsey Vonn reflected on the deeper meaning of her return to skiing while sending a message about it. Years after navigating a series of setbacks and injuries, Vonn has now returned to the slope with a shift in her goals.
The 40-year-old announced her comeback to skiing on Thursday, November 14, 2024, with the 2024-25 Alpine Skiing World Cup season underway. She last competed in the skiing circuit in 2019 and remained away from the sport after enduring multiple injuries.
Having commenced her skiing journey as only a three-year-old, she went on to compete in her first race at seven and competed in her initial international competition, at the World Junior Championships and World Cup at nine.
The three-time Olympic medalist recently shared a video where she spoke about her skiing career, claiming that returning to the sport was bigger than becoming the best version of herself.
"It started with a dream as a 9-year-old girl. It was about pushing myself to become the best I could be, for me. Now, it’s about something bigger. What drives me and keeps me going is something bigger than just myself," Lindsey Vonn wrote.
"Incredible journey after surgery" - Lindsey Vonn shares an update on her recovery after knee-replacement surgery
After steering through frequent knee injuries, Lindsey Vonn underwent knee replacement surgery in April this year.
Following the surgery, Vonn constantly updated her fans with the recovery process, Ahead of her comeback to the sport, she took to social media to inform fans about her inability to jump on her right leg.
Sharing a video of her newly gained jumping strength, she emphasized on the progress she made in her recovery.
"It may seem insignificant, but I haven’t been able to jump on my right leg like that for many, many years. Today I am SO much stronger than I was before! I literally had to take a moment and regroup… I got very emotional and I was so so happy. This is an incredible journey after surgery that I did not expect"
Lindsey Vonn is part of the elite club along with Mikaela Shiffrin who have secured World Cup victories in all five disciplines: downhill, super-G, giant slalom, slalom and super combined. All in all, she has won 82 World Cup races.