Soelden, Austria: American star Lindsey Vonn begins her road to Olympic redemption as the Alpine skiing season starts this weekend at the Austrian resort of Soelden.
The 33-year-old Vonn missed the 2014 Sochi Games with a right knee injury, leaving her unable to add to downhill gold and a bronze in the Super-G from Vancouver.
But the four-time overall World Cup champion will line up in Saturday’s season-opening giant slalom for her first race in the technical discipline in almost two years.
“I have been training well these past few days on the Italian glacier of Val Senales and I feel good,” said Vonn.
Although slowed by a raft of crashes, injuries and subsequent surgery — she called last year’s severely fractured right arm “by far the most painful injury” of her career — Vonn claimed downhill bronze at St Moritz in February to become the oldest female world championship medallist.
Her 77 career World Cup race triumphs are a women’s all-time record and she trails only Swedish legend Ingemar Stenmark’s career mark of 86.
