At age 40, Lindsey Vonn is going to enter an official ski race for the first time in nearly six years this weekend.
Having already announced last month that she was coming out of retirement, Vonn will race lower-level FIS downhills and super-Gs on Saturday and Sunday, respectively, in Copper Mountain, Colorado, U.S. Ski Team head coach Paul Kristofic told The Associated Press.
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Vonn needs some decent results to improve her long-dormant ranking so she can enter World Cup races this season under a new wild card rule.
“Obviously her history speaks for itself and she’s definitely the most decorated speed skier out there and has done amazing things throughout her career,” Kristofic said Wednesday. “So it will be really, really fun and interesting to see what she can do.”
It’s likely that many of the current World Cup racers will be competing alongside Vonn at Copper Mountain.
Vonn is a three-time Olympic medalist, including a downhill gold at the 2010 Vancouver Games.
Her 82 World Cup race victories stood as the record for a woman until that total was eclipsed in January 2023 by fellow American Mikaela Shiffrin, who is still active and is now up to 99 wins — more than any Alpine ski racer in the history of the sport.
Vonn’s last competition came in February 2019, after she dealt with a long series of injuries throughout her career.
There were broken arms and legs, torn knee ligaments, concussions and more.
Just this April, years after leaving the World Cup circuit, she had surgery for a partial knee replacement.
During training at Copper Mountain with the rest of the U.S. team, Kristofic said Vonn's performance was “really promising."
“It’s getting better every time she goes out on the hill. It’s been a lot of work to catch up after five years away. But she’s motivated and pushing hard and I think really enjoying it, too,” he said.
Can Vonn be competitive right away?
“I think it will be a building process,” Kristofic said. “The full race intensity is something that’s difficult to replicate. But I think if she stays healthy and continues to improve the way she is, I think she will be competitive.”
Vonn was not made available for comment following requests by The AP.
Tom Brady and others performed well beyond age 40
Tom Brady was the Super Bowl MVP at age 43 in 2021.
Serena Williams reached the Australian Open semifinals at age 39 in 2021.
At 41, swimmer Dara Torres won three silver medals at the 2008 Olympics.
LeBron James is still going ahead of his 40th birthday this month.
And Phil Mickelson won a golf major at 50 in 2021 with his PGA Championship title.
No woman older than 34 has won a World Cup ski race
The oldest woman to win a World Cup downhill was Vonn herself at age 33 in Are, Sweden, in March 2018.
The oldest female winner in any race was established at the start of this season, when Federica Brignone won the giant slalom in Soelden, Austria, in October, at age 34.
The oldest man to win a race was Didier Cuche at 37 in a super-G in Crans Montana, Switzerland, in 2012.
Johan Clarey set the record for the oldest podium finisher with a second-place result in the famed Hahnenkamm downhill in Kitzbuehel, Austria, at age 42 in January 2023.
Bill Johnson, the first U.S. skier to win an Olympic downhill title, suffered brain injuries when he crashed badly at age 40 during a comeback attempt. Johnson died five years later.
Eight-time overall World Cup champion Marcel Hirscher took advantage of the wild card rule and recently returned after five years away. But then Hirscher tore his left ACL while training in giant slalom and announced on Tuesday that his comeback season was done.
Breezy Johnson set to return after breaking anti-doping rules
Breezy Johnson, one of the U.S. team’s most accomplished downhillers since Vonn’s retirement, is due to return for races in Beaver Creek, Colorado, this month after a 14-month ban after breaking anti-doping rules.
Kristofic said it's been “really difficult” for Johnson being away from the sport.
“She’s had to figure it out on her own and she’s done a good job with that," he said.
Johnson made three violations of whereabouts rules.
Shiffrin in Colorado recuperating from crash
Shiffrin has gone home to Colorado to recuperate from her crash in Saturday’s giant slalom in Killington.
Shiffrin suffered a deep puncture wound on the right side of her abdomen and “severe muscle trauma” but no serious bone, ligament or organ damage.
Kristofic said the team was still trying to determine what exactly caused the puncture wound.
“Something sharp went through everything, including her suit. It was a pretty massive impact on the base of the gate," he said.
Kristofic also cited strong results from the rest of the giant slalom team, with Katie Hensien finishing fourth in Soelden and Nina O’Brien sixth in Killington — both career bests; and promising 19-year-old Elisabeth Bocock earning her first World Cup points in Killington.
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AP skiing: https://apnews.com/hub/alpine-skiing