Lindsey Vonn suffered a serious accident during the Milano-Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics in the women’s downhill event that nearly led to a tragic outcome for the skier’s leg.

Injury History

Lindsey Vonn returned to the Olympics after retiring due to multiple injuries (ACL and MCL tears, fractures, and reconstructive surgeries) that had kept her away from elite competition and ultimately led to her stepping away from the sport before the 2019 season.

In 2024, she underwent a partial knee replacement and reconstruction surgery, a rare procedure for athletes aiming to return to competition. Even after this operation and against all odds, Vonn made her comeback at the Milano-Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics.

An outcome that could have been tragic

In an Instagram post, Vonn explained that the injury was not only a fracture: the trauma from the crash caused compartment syndrome in her leg, a dangerous condition in which pressure builds up because the contents of the muscle compartment (blood, inflammatory fluid, swollen muscle) exceed the available space.

This pressure could have destroyed the tendons, muscles and nerves in Vonn’s leg if not treated quickly. Fortunately, Dr. Tom Hackett, together with Italian medical staff, treated the injury in time saving her leg.

“The doctor performed what’s called a fasciotomy: he opened both sides of my leg and basically left it open so it could ‘breathe.’ He saved me,” Vonn said in her video.

Without her medical team, the story would be different

Because of her previous ACL injury, Dr. Tom Hackett, who had treated that ligament tear, traveled to Cortina to be present in case her knee ligaments were affected again. By chance, he was there to treat her new injury immediately ultimately saving Vonn’s leg.

“I always say everything happens for a reason, but if I hadn’t torn my ACL, which I would have torn anyway in that crash, Tom wouldn’t have been there. He wouldn’t have been able to save my leg,” Vonn explained.

No regrets about returning

Vonn said she does not regret returning to the Olympics. She admitted she wished the results had been different, but she would rather have tried than not at all.

She was discharged after two weeks and also revealed she suffered a fracture in her right ankle. Doctors estimate the full fracture in her left leg will take about a year to heal, after which she will need another surgery to repair her torn ACL.

“Life is life, and we have to take the punches as they come. So I’m going to do the best I can. This really knocked me down, but I’m like Rocky, I always get back up. I love you guys. Thank you,” Vonn said, closing her message with resilience and gratitude.