Lindsey Vonn says she has ‘no regrets’ despite scary crash

Despite her Olympic comeback lasting just mere seconds, American skier Lindsey Vonn said Monday she has “no regrets.”

Vonn’s defiant bid to win the Winter Olympic downhill at the age of 41, on a rebuilt right knee and a badly injured left knee, ended Sunday in a frightening crash that left her with a broken leg and saw her taken to safety by a rescue helicopter for the second time in nine days. 

Vonn lost control within moments of leaving the start house, clipping a gate with her right shoulder and pinwheeling down the slope before ending up awkwardly on her back, her skis criss-crossed below her and her screams ringing out soon after medical personnel arrived.

Speaking for the first time on Monday since the crash, Vonn gave an update on her injury.

“Unfortunately, I sustained a complex tibia fracture that is currently stable but will require multiple surgeries to fix properly,” Vonn said in an Instagram post.

All eyes had been on Vonn, the feel-good story heading into the Olympics. She returned to elite ski racing last season after nearly six years, a remarkable decision given her age, but she also had a partial titanium knee replacement in her right knee, too.

And though her comeback didn’t have a storybook ending, Vonn said she wouldn’t have changed a thing.

“While yesterday did not end the way I had hoped, and despite the intense physical pain it caused, I have no regrets,” Vonn said on Instagram. “Standing in the starting gate yesterday was an incredible feeling that I will never forget. Knowing I stood there having a chance to win was a victory in and of itself. I also knew that racing was a risk. It always was and always will be an incredibly dangerous sport.”

If anything, she’s hoping people can learn a valuable lesson from her comeback attempt.

“I hope if you take away anything from my journey, it’s that you all have the courage to dare greatly,” Vonn wrote. Life is too short not to take chances on yourself. Because the only failure in life is not trying.

“I believe in you, just as you believed in me.”

— With files from the Associated Press