Olympic medalist Lindsey Vonn has suffered gut-wrenching injuries, competed through them, and won.Gabriele Facciotti/AP Images
• In the Winter Olympics and beyond, Lindsey Vonn is the face of alpine skiing for Americans.
• She began skiing at the age of three and competing at the age of six.
• Vonn won a gold medal in downhill skiing at the 2010 Vancouver Olympics, but missed the subsequent Olympic Games in Sochi due to a major injury. She also placed eighth during the 2006 Turin Olympics, just 48 hours after a horrific crash.
• She’ll be tackling the downhill, Super G, and combined events in the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang, South Korea.
For years, Lindsey Vonn has reigned as the queen of alpine skiing for many Americans. As one of the most visible skiers out there, she’s become the face of the sport in the US.
And now, with Winter Olympic Games in Pyeongchang approaching, she may be preparing to close one chapter of her athletic career.
Reuters reported the upcoming games “are likely to be her last Winter Olympics.”
And the 33-year-old competitor is looking to make this last one count.
“I want to win more than everyone else expects me to win,” she told CBC. “The biggest competitor will be just myself, trying to stay relaxed and stay focused, because I have been waiting for these Olympics for so long and I want to win so badly that I need to be able to keep it together.”
Here’s a look at the career that’s gotten her to this point: