Vonn finishes 24th in first downhill race since announcing return at age 40

COPPER MOUNTAIN, Colo. (AP) — For a pair of lower-level downhill events, this sure had plenty of Olympic medal-capturing and World Cup-winning ski racers.

The stage belonged to Lindsey Vonn, the 40-year-old who took another step on her comeback trail Saturday with her first races in nearly six years.

Vonn wasn't particularly speedy and finished in the middle of the pack on a cold but sunny day at Copper Mountain. Times and places weren't the mission, though, as much as getting used to the speed again and gaining the necessary points to compete on the World Cup circuit this season. Vonn accomplished both, finishing 24th in the first downhill race of the day and 27th in the second.

She posted on social media after the FIS races that she had enough points to enter World Cup events. The timing couldn't be more perfect — the next stop on the women's circuit is Beaver Creek, Colorado, in a week. Vonn, who used to own a home in nearby Vail, hasn't committed to any sort of timetable for a World Cup return.

“Today was a solid start and I had a blast being in start with my teammates again!” Vonn wrote on X. “While I’m sure people will speculate and say I’m not in top form because of the results, I disagree. This was training for me. I’m still testing equipment and getting back in the groove.”

Her competition — a veritable who's who of high-profile ski racers — applauded her efforts.

“I don't expect her to come back and win — just that she comes back and she has fun,” said Federica Brignone of Italy, a former overall World Cup champion and three-time Olympic medallist. “She's having fun, and she’s doing what she loves. That’s the best thing that she could do.”

In the first race on a frigid morning, Vonn wound up 1.44 seconds behind the winning time of 1 minute, 5.79 seconds posted by Mirjam Puchner of Austria.

In her second race through the course later in the morning, Vonn was 1.53 seconds behind Cornelia Huetter of Austria, who finished in 1:05.99. Huetter is the reigning season-long World Cup downhill champion.

“It’s really nice to compare with her again, and nice to have her (racing) again,” Huetter said. “For sure, for the skiing World Cup, we have a lot of more attention. It's generally good for all racers because everyone is looking.”

Also in the field were Nadia Delago of Italy, who won a bronze medal in downhill at the 2022 Beijing Olympics, and Puchner, the Olympic silver winner in super-G in Beijing. In addition, there was Marta Bassino of Italy, a winner of the super-G at the 2023 world championships, and two-time Olympic champion Michelle Gisin of Switzerland.

“For me, it was really a training, but it was fun to have a World Cup race level right here,” Gisin said. “It was a crazy race.”

Vonn remains a popular figure and took the time after each run to sign autographs for young fans along with posing for photos.

When she left the sport, Vonn had 82 World Cup race victories — including 18 in Lake Louise, Alta. — which stood as the record for a woman and within reach of the all-time Alpine record of 86 held by Swedish standout Ingemar Stenmark.

The women’s mark held by Vonn was surpassed in January 2023 by Mikaela Shiffrin, who now has 99 wins — more than any alpine ski racer in the history of the sport. Shiffrin is currently sidelined after a crash in a giant slalom event in Killington, Vermont, last weekend.

Vonn’s last major race was in February 2019, when she finished third in a downhill during the world championships in Sweden. The three-time Olympic medallist left the circuit still near the top of her game. But all the broken arms and legs, concussions and torn knee ligaments took too big a toll and sent her into retirement.

She had a partial knee replacement last April and felt good enough to give racing another shot.

“It's very impressive to see all the passion that Lindsey still has,” Gisin said.

Also racing Saturday was 45-year-old Sarah Schleper, who once competed for the United States but now represents Mexico. Schleper was the next racer behind Vonn and they got a chance to share a moment between a pair of 40-somethings still racing.

“I was like, ‘Give me some tips, Lindsey,’” Schleper said. “She’s like, ‘Oh, it’s a highway tuck, the whole thing.’ Then she’s like, ‘It’s just like the good old days.’"

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AP skiing: https://apnews.com/hub/alpine-skiing