DREAMS DASHED

Lindsey Vonn Takes Brutal Spill 13 Seconds Into Olympic Final

The U.S. skiing legend was airlifted away after a devastating televised medal attempt.

Lindsey Vonn’s Olympic medal dreams ended after she crashed during Sunday’s skiing final. At the age of 41, the legend—who previously won gold in the 2010 Winter Olympics—was hoping to become the oldest ever skier to take home an Olympic medal. The American skier was racing against the odds, having torn her left ACL just nine days before competing, and sported a knee brace as she attempted the Tofane course in Cortina d’Ampezzo, 250 miles from Milan. Vonn set off under clear skies during the final, but crashed and fell before reaching the first marker at just 13.4 seconds into her race. Vonn hit her head and continued to fall down the hill, with her screams audible in the televised broadcast. The Olympian was quickly attended by medical staff, who strapped her into a stretcher and helicoptered her away. Vonn’s sister, Karin Kildow, revealed that the athlete remains under medical evaluation. She added: “That’s definitely the last thing we wanted to see. When that happens, you’re just immediately hoping she’s okay, and it was scary. When you start to see the stretchers being put out, it’s not a good sign.”