After five years off and a knee replacement surgery this past April, Parkite legend Lindsey Vonn is set to make her return to competition Saturday at the FIS Fall Festival in Copper Mountain, Colorado. Vonn announced just weeks ago that she would be making her return from retirement and rejoining the U.S. Ski Team.
The 40 year old will be competing in the competition’s downhill and super-G races on Saturday and Sunday, respectively. Each of the events has will have two runs. There is also downhill training set for Saturday.
The Saturday downhill will be Vonn’s first race since the 2019 World Championships in Are, Sweden. She claimed bronze there.
Vonn and the U.S. team are optimistic about the legend’s return to action. She’s pain free and has reportedly been skiing very well in training. Vonn said she wants to enjoy whatever skiing she does and believes she can make it back to the World Cup level.
The festival is a lower-level competition, but it’s a great spot for Vonn to kickstart her journey back. The U.S. team has been training there in the preseason, and it’s just down the road from Beaver Creek, where the first downhill, super-G cup of the season is being held next week. She’s allowed wild cards this season into Cups as a former world champion.
“It’s very exciting to be training with her right now and be on the same team with her,” said fellow Parkite alpine skier Lauren Macuga on Vonn. “It’s been great to watch her, see her and how one of the best skiers in the world functions and gets ready to go training. Then, how she is on the hill, it’s pretty impressive for five years off and the knee replacement. She looks good.”
Head coach of the U.S. women’s alpine team Paul Kristofic agrees with Macuga that Vonn is in good form, and he’s ready to see her in action. He told the Associated Press that he thinks she can be competitive once again in the sport but that she’ll probably need some race reps after the years off.
“It’s getting better every time she goes out on the hill,” added Kristofic to the AP. “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. … I think it will be a building process. The full race intensity is something that’s difficult to replicate.”
Vonn will focus on her specialties in downhill and super-G throughout her comeback. There are eight Cups and a World Championships in those events for the women this season. After the Beaver Creek Cup, the circuit heads to St. Moritz, Switzerland, before their holiday break.
To follow Vonn’s results this weekend in Copper Mountain, see the FIS’ page for the festival. The Beaver Creek Cup results and those for the rest of the season can be tracked on the FIS’ downhill and super-G page.
