Olympics-Alpine skiing-FIS chief hopes to see Vonn back on skis soon

By Julien Pretot

CORTINA D’AMPEZZO, Italy, Feb 10 (Reuters) – International Ski and Snowboard Federation (FIS) president Johan Eliasch said on Tuesday he hoped to see Lindsey Vonn back on skis soon after the American great said she had suffered a complex tibia fracture in her Olympic downhill crash.

Vonn, 41, crashed 13 seconds into Sunday’s race at the Milano-Cortina Winter Games and said on social media that the injury, though currently stable, would need several surgeries to repair. The gold medal was won by her U.S. teammate Breezy Johnson.

“We all wish Lindsey a full and speedy recovery and hope to see her on skis again soon,” Eliasch told reporters.

In an Instagram post on Monday, Vonn said she had “no regrets” about racing despite a recent anterior cruciate ligament rupture and other past injuries, insisting they were unrelated to the crash.

Vonn had been chasing history in Cortina, aiming to become the oldest Alpine skiing medallist in Olympic history after a strong comeback season that included two World Cup downhill wins and podium finishes in her other starts.

“She is an extraordinary human being,” United States Olympic and Paralympic Committee CEO Sarah Hirshland told a press conference on Tuesday. “We are incredibly lucky and incredibly grateful to call her a teammate.”

The American skier also sits on both the board and the executive committee of the Utah 2034 Winter Olympics, and Games leaders praised her competitive spirit, while wishing her a speedy recovery.

“It was so hard to see that, but Lindsey is fearless and she taught us how to come back from adversity and put everything into it,” said Fraser Bullock, President of the Utah 2034 Games, who was on the slopes and witnessed her crash first hand.

“Lindsey only knows one speed and that is all out. That’s what she was doing that day, without an ACL,  just amazing. She is an important part of our family here in Utah… and we wish her the very best in recovery,” he said.

Vonn still leads the downhill standings and could yet claim the discipline’s Crystal Globe despite her season being over.

(Reporting by Julien Pretot, Additional reporting by Karolos Grohmann, editing by Ed Osmond and Hugh Lawson)