The Big Lead

Lindsey Vonn comes out of retirement to rejoin U.S. ski team

By Joe Lago

Feb 22, 2018; Pyeongchang, South Korea; Lindsey Vonn (USA) walks off the course after competing in the women's alpine combined slalom event during the Pyeongchang 2018 Olympic Winter Games at Jeongseon Alpine Centre. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Swinger-Imagn Images
Feb 22, 2018; Pyeongchang, South Korea; Lindsey Vonn (USA) walks off the course after competing in the women's alpine combined slalom event during the Pyeongchang 2018 Olympic Winter Games at Jeongseon Alpine Centre. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Swinger-Imagn Images / Jeff Swinger-Imagn Images
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Lindsey Vonn, the American skiing star who won three Olympic medals and 20 World Cup titles, is making a surprising comeback.

The 40-year-old Vonn, who retired from a successful but injury-filled career in 2019, will rejoin the United States ski team and eventually return to competition, U.S. Ski & Snowboard announced on Thursday.

Vonn made the decision after she had "successful knee surgery" earlier this year and was able to "test her knee over the past couple of months" in training, according to the U.S. Ski & Snowboard press release.

In an interview with the New York Times, Vonn said that her right-knee replacement surgery was revelatory and enabled her to ski pain-free. “I had a smile so wide it was coming through the back of my helmet,” she said.

Vonn, who won downhill gold at the 2010 Vancouver Olympics, hopes to compete in World Cup races this winter. She said she would participate in the U.S. ski team's training sessions in Colorado this weekend, focusing on downhill and super-G, the event in which she won bronze at the Vancouver Games.

“Getting back to skiing without pain has been an incredible journey,” Vonn said in the U.S. Ski & Snowboard press release. “I am looking forward to being back with the Stifel U.S. Ski Team and to continue to share my knowledge of the sport with these incredible women.”

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