Lindsey Vonn crashed and suffered a hairline fracture in her left knee in a World Cup super-G in Andorra on Saturday but may race Sunday, according to her social media.
“Got caught in the soft snow today and crashed pretty hard,” was posted on Vonn’s Instagram with a picture of a heavily bandaged left knee. “X-rays showed I have a hairline fracture in my left knee and will get an MRI Monday. I will wait and see how I feel tomorrow to decide if I can race.”
Vonn had the fastest split time under snowfall, about 10 seconds from the finish of the super-G course, when she fell while shifting pressure onto her left leg for a turn.
She slid for six seconds and came to a stop, not running into safety fencing.
Vonn lay motionless on the snow while officials came to her, detached her skis and eventually loaded her onto a sled to transport her down the mountain 11 minutes after she crashed.
Vonn lifted her head inside her helmet as she was transported toward the finish area while fans cheered.
Vonn was later published on the start list for a super combined Sunday in Andorra, but that doesn’t mean she will race.
The start of Saturday’s race was delayed three hours by strong winds and snowfall. The course was shortened due to the conditions.
Vonn has a history of injuries, most notably two major right knee surgeries that knocked her out of the Sochi Olympics. She’s won nine races this season and leads the World Cup overall standings with nine races and three weeks left in the season.
Italian Federica Brignone won Saturday’s super-G, with American Laurenne Ross taking second, matching her best career World Cup finish.
“It started snowing pretty hard in the middle of the race, and that definitely created some slow surfaces for the girls behind,” said Ross, who started No. 10, six spots ahead of Vonn. “That’s ski racing. If you’re on the good side of it, you have to take advantage of it. If you’re on the bad side, you just hope for the best next time.”
Swiss Lara Gut placed 16th, moving within eight points of Vonn’s standings lead for the World Cup overall title, the sport’s biggest prize this season with no Olympics or World Championships.
Olympic slalom champion Mikaela Shiffrin, in her second race back from a Dec. 12 crash, finished 29th in her second career World Cup super-G start.
VIDEO: Vonn meets Ingemar Stenmark