Lindsey Vonn’s Knee Surgery Delays Her Return To The Slopes

Skier Lindsey Vonn will not return to the slopes until late November. The world’s top skier is still recovering from surgery on her right knee.

Vonn was originally scheduled to participate in Saturday’s season-opening race in Austria. The 29-year-old decided to delay her return after training on the glacier in Soelden for the past week.

“While I physically feel great, I have decided to not race this weekend, and instead will focus on returning in Beaver Creek (Nov. 29-Dec. 1),” Vonn told The Associated Press. “I am confident the extra month of training will ultimately put me in the best position to have a successful season.”

Vonn, a four-time World Cup winner and Olympics downhill champion, hasn’t competed since she tore her anterior cruciate and medial collateral ligaments in a February crash at the world championships in Schladming.

Lindsey Vonn’s ultimate goal is to compete for Team USA during the Sochi Olympics in February. Vonn has promised not to compete until she is in top form and ready to compete on the world’s largest sports stage.

Originally Vonn wanted to compete at Beaver Creek but a training camp in Portillo, Chile, in August made her change the timetable for competition.

Getting into top shape isn’t just about Sochi, Vonn only needs three more wins to tie the e 62 World Cup race victories of Austrian skier Annemarie Moser-Proell. To date Vonn has won three World Cup giant slalom championships, 29 in downhill, 20 in super-G, two in slalom, and five wins in combined.

Talking to reporters about missing the upcoming competition Lindsey Vonn adds, “My training camp in Soelden went very well and I made great progress but I feel that I need more training before I start racing again, which means the Soelden race is not in the cards this year. Patience is not my strong suit so not racing is very hard for me but it will only make me more excited for the next one. I will go home to Vail and continue my preparation for the Beaver Creek races and my ultimate goal in February!”