Gloomy prognosis
Lindsey Vonn: Doctor advises against participating in the Olympics despite torn cruciate ligament
02/03/2026 – 7:54 p.mReading time: 2 minutes
Lindsey Vonn wants to win a medal at the Olympics despite tearing her cruciate ligament. A doctor considers this project to be very dangerous – even beyond your career.
When it comes to Olympic medals in the downhill race on Sunday (from 11.30 a.m. in the live ticker on t-online), Lindsey Vonn will no longer be among the favorites. The 41-year-old was looking forward to her fifth Winter Games with confidence, but as she announced at a press conference on Tuesday afternoon, she tore a cruciate ligament in her left knee last Friday.
Despite the injury and a partial prosthesis in her right knee, she wants to fight for her second Olympic downhill gold medal since 2010 a few days after the injury. “I know my chances aren’t as great as before. But as long as there’s a chance, I’ll try,” said the visibly moved Vonn. Ski racing is dangerous and she pushes herself to the limit, explained the four-time overall World Cup winner.
Dr. med. Kourosh Modaressi considers this to be a “new escalation level” from a medical perspective, as the downtime for this injury is usually several months. He therefore strongly advises the top athlete not to take part. “In the worst case scenario, she risks permanent damage: severe meniscus tears, additional cartilage defects, accelerated osteoarthritis – and thus pain and restrictions far beyond top-class sport,” he told the Swiss news portal 20min. The orthopedic surgeon worked at the Zurich University Hospital, among other places.
The fact that no one from the US team talks her out of the project only shows her exceptional position, but is anything but sensible. “If one knee is unstable and the other has been biomechanically altered by an implant, the entire system becomes unbalanced,” he explains. Her only advantage: Vonn’s thigh muscle is so strong that the pain is not acute. The US athlete also confirmed this at the press conference and also said that her knee was not swollen.
She wants to protect her knee during the race with an orthosis, which she also wears on the right side. “I’ve never been afraid, I’ve always been an adventurer,” she said. And after years of ski racing and injuries, she knows her body “very well. I feel lucky that I can still do what I love so much.”
Modaressi doesn’t believe that Vonn can actually compete for a medal. “After a cruciate ligament tear – especially if there is an existing knee prosthesis on the opposite side – the goal is suitability for everyday use and moderate leisure sports, not high performance.” In extreme cases, her participation could lead to her needing a knee joint replacement on her left side as soon as possible.
