SUN VALLEY, Idaho − Lindsey Vonn is back on the podium.
Four months after coming out of retirement, Vonn finished second in the super-G at the World Cup finals on Sunday. It’s her first podium appearance since March 2018, and makes the 40-year-old the oldest woman to win a World Cup medal.
Vonn retired midway through the 2019 season, her body ravaged by injuries. But a partial knee replacement last April left her pain-free for the first time in years, and she decided to come back in hopes of making it to next year’s Milan-Cortina Olympics.
Vonn has shown glimpses of her old self, finishing fourth in a World Cup in St. Anton. But she was stellar Sunday.
Lara Gut-Behrami had laid down a blistering run, and none of the other top women could match her. But Vonn was all gas, no brakes through the entire run on the Challenger Course. The fans were roaring every time they glimpsed her, and they erupted in roars when she crossed the finish line. Vonn shook her fists, a wide grin on her face.
She had to wait for the final skiers, but no one came close and the silver medal – and a return to the podium – was Vonn’s.
