Desired at the World Cup not fulfilled
Tart disappointment for ski star Lindsey Vonn
10.02.2025 – 1:50 p.m.Reading time: 1 min.
She had hoped to be able to drive Mikaela Shiffrin in combination. But there is no space for Lindsey Vonn in the top team of the USA.
For Lindsey Vonn, the comeback World Cup in Saalbach-Hinterglemm is developing into an unexpected stumbling block. After disappointing results in Super-G and departure, the US Ski Association is now denying the hoped-for cooperation with Mikaela Shiffrin in the combination format held for the first time at a World Cup.
Four teams per nation start in the combination on Tuesday (10 a.m. and 1:15 p.m./ZDF and in the live ticker at T-Online). The new discipline stipulates that a downhill and slalom runner form a common duo.
For the United States, Mikaela Shiffrin goes into the race as a favorite – together with departure world champion Breezy Johnson. Lindsey Vonn, on the other hand, drives with 24-year-old AJ Hurt, as the US Ski Association. In addition to the teams Shiffrin/Johnson and Vonn/Hurt, the USA also sends the couples Lauren Macuga/Paula Moltzan and Jackie Wiles/Katie Hensien.
A duo with the ski queen Shiffrin would have visibly increased Medal opportunities. The 40-year-old commented on the Platform X noticeably: “I was always a team player and I support my team under all circumstances. I am not surprised by the decisions, but at least it is clear that it wasn’t my decision.”
In the previous World Cup races, the fourfold world champion did not go according to plan. Vonn left the Super-G, in the departure she took 15th place. The 2010 Olympic champion from 2010 should have imagined her return to the World Cup after almost six years of break.