Lindsey Vonn suffered a horror crash at the Winter Olympics to scupper her hopes of an age-defying comeback at Milano-Cortina 2026.
But Italian ski great Alberto Tomba insists her downfall on the slopes came after a move to race at Crans-Montana last month.
The American has been criticised over her desire to win one more race, with Tomba insisting it led to a chain of risks that eventually caught up with her in the form of a ruptured anterior cruciate ligament on her left knee.
The 41-year-old lost her balance in the 30 January World Cup race in Switzerland and crashed into the side netting, but Vonn defied logic and expectations to race in Cortina d’Ampezzo, setting the third fastest time on Saturday on the Olimpia delle Tofane piste with a brace on her knee. But Sunday’s race saw her airlifted to hospital for surgery on a broken leg, with Tomba criticising her preparation for the Games.
“She shouldn’t have raced at Crans-Montana,” Tomba told Reuters from the terrace of a hotel in Cortina. “She should have come here and trained, instead.”
Vonn, the 2010 Olympic champion, had been on the podium five times in five downhills this season prior to the Crans-Montana crash, with two wins, a second place and two thirds.
The four-times overall World Cup champion started her comeback in 2024, after nearly six years out and following right knee replacement surgery. She had said in December she felt stronger, fitter and faster than ever before.
“When you feel in good shape, you want to win again. One race leads to another. But after five years preparing for these Olympics … well, she took a risk,” Tomba said.
Tomba, 59, was part of a golden age of Italian skiing and won gold at the Albertville Games in 1992, following two golds in Calgary in 1988.
Along with Italian skier Debora Compagnoni, he was given the honour of lighting the Olympic cauldron in Milan on Friday.
Organisers cancelled the Crans-Montana race in worsening conditions with snow falling.
Pressed on whether rule changes were needed to protect athletes, Tomba was cautious.
“It’s not easy. You can say that, but when you’re in the start gate …I was maybe the only one who wouldn’t start if conditions weren’t right. Different times, different courses,” he said.
