Ten years after reaching her first podium at the World Championships at Are, in Sweden, America’s Lindsey Vonn captured her seventh medal at a major FIS event, finishing an excellent 3rd in downhill at St. Moritz only half a second behind Slovenia’s Ilka Stuhec.
The US veteran who competed in her tenth medal event since the 2002 Olympics at Salt Lake City, managed to capture at least a medal since Are 2007 in FIS competitions except four years ago at Schladming, where she suffered a devastating knee injury after a terrible crash while racing in Super-G.
In 2009 she clinched two gold medals at Val d’Isère, France, after dominating both the downhill and the Super-G a year before grabbing Olympic gold at Vancouver in downhill. Two years ago, Lindsey got bronze in Super-G at Beaver Creek racing in front of her home crowd and her family.
The champion from Vail, who broke her right arm last November while training in Colorado, fought hard today on the Corviglia course to overcome her doubts and tension after skiing out here last week in Super-G and crashing two days in a row in the last downhill race at Cortina d’Ampezzo.
“This has been quite a battle today, I was not as confident as usual prior to that race,” she explained afterwards. “It’s difficult to take all risks when you are not totally sure of yourself,” added the quadruple overall World Cup champion who returned to competition only a month ago in Austria. “My preparation for this event was pretty short too so I could not race at my best level.” A few days ago, she still managed to come in 5th in a combined event only a few tenths of a second shy from the podium.
“This bronze medal is amazing, it’s nearly worth gold,” Vonn also told the press. “I’m so happy. This is the happiest I’ve ever been to be third in my life. Today, I just did my best. You know, I fought really hard from top to bottom. I know I can ski better, but I think considering my preparation and my hand, my arm, I think today feels like a gold medal. I’m the oldest female medalist ever, and I think that’s the best news I’ve heard all day.”
A winner in 77 World Cup competitions in the past thirteen years, Lindsey still aims to reach more prestigious goals in her career such as beating the record of 86 wins established in the 1970s and 1980s by Sweden’s Skiing Legend Ingemar Stenmark and fight for another Olympic medal next winter in Korea. “I’m now going home to rest for a few days then I’ll return to the World Cup tour in two weeks at Crans-Montana, there are still many races left on the program and I feel able to raise my level,” she also commented.
Lindsey was also very glad to meet her own role model at the finish area at St. Moritz – tennis superstar Roger Federer, who won his 18th Grand Slam title a few weeks ago in Australia. Both watched the men’s downhill race from the stands for a few minutes.
