Vonn hopes to go home after 4th surgery following Olympic crash
CORTINA D’AMPEZZO, Italy — Lindsey Vonn will have another surgery on her broken left leg Saturday at the Italian hospital treating her, “and then I can potentially leave and go home.”
Vonn posted a video message on Instagram on Friday following her horrific accident during the Olympic downhill race at the Milan Cortina Games.
“Hey guys, I just wanted to give you a little update and say thank you so much to everyone who sent me flowers and letters,” Vonn said, adding that she also received some stuffed animals, including a shark pillow that she rested her head on in the video. “It’s been so amazing and it’s really helped me a lot.
“It’s been a pretty rough few days in the hospital here. I’m finally feeling more like myself. I have a very, very long way to go. Tomorrow I’ll have another operation and hopefully that goes well and then I can potentially leave and go home, after which I’ll need another operation. I’m still not sure exactly what that entails until I get better imaging, but that’s kind of where I’m at right now. “
Vonn is being treated in a hospital in Treviso.
“And yes, it’s a bruise under my eye,” Vonn added in the text portion of her post. “But almost gone!”
Vonn crashed 13 seconds into her run during Sunday’s race and was airlifted off the course by helicopter. The 41-year-old American ski star said Monday evening that she suffered a “complex tibia fracture which is currently stable but will require multiple surgeries to properly repair.”
She said Wednesday that she had undergone a “successful” third operation.
Nine days before Sunday’s accident, Vonn ruptured the ACL in his left knee in another accident. Even before that, all eyes were on her as the feel-good story ahead of the Olympics for her comeback after nearly six years of retirement.
In her final post, Vonn said she was “very still, but I have a lot of friends and family who come to visit.”
“I feel very lucky and privileged to have so many people around me who have really helped me get through this, so I just wanted to say thank you and join Team USA,” Vonn said. “It’s so awesome to watch and it really lifted my spirits. Good job, team, and keep crushing it. I’ll contact you when I can.”
