Lindsey Vonn on Saturday was not about to put everything on the line in her first FIS Alpine Ski World Cup race back after more than five years of retirement.
Not with her history of crashes and injuries, not with her new titanium knee and not at age 40.
Vonn took a low-risk approach, finishing 14th in a super-G, crossing 1.18 seconds behind Austrian winner Cornelia Huetter.
Photo: AFP
“This was the perfect start,” Vonn said. “Today is just the first step and I’m not looking for more. Today I really needed to get to the finish. I wanted to have a solid result, and that’s exactly what I did.”
Still, when Vonn came down, the crowd of Swiss-flag-waving fans turned silent in anticipation and all of the other top skiers watched her run on a perfectly clear day in the Alps.
“To have her back on the world stage is just fantastic,” said Sophie Goldschmidt, president and CEO of US Ski and Snowboard. “Just the attention she’s bringing to the sport and the role model she is — it’s a big day.”
Vonn left the tour with 82 World Cup wins — the record for a woman at the time and within reach of the then all-time Alpine mark of 86 held by Swedish standout Ingemar Stenmark. The women’s record held by Vonn was eclipsed last year by Mikaela Shiffrin, who now has an outright record 99 wins.
The oldest woman to win a World Cup race was Federica Brignone, the Italian who won the giant slalom in Soelden, Austria, in October to start this season, at age 34.
BOOT TO FACE: Wilfried Singo said that his actions were not intentional, ‘but I was able to see afterwards that’ the ’keeper had a significant face injury Paris Saint-Germain on Wednesday came from behind to extend their unbeaten start to the Ligue 1 season with a 4-2 win away against AS Monaco, but lost goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma to a gruesome facial injury. The bloodied Italy international was left requiring 10 staples after sustaining lacerations to the right side of his face when he was caught by the studs of Monaco defender Wilfried Singo. “I don’t know if the referee was badly positioned, but VAR needed to intervene, you have to protect the players,” PSG captain Marquinhos said. “To not give a red in a situation like
India’s chess star Gukesh Dommaraju returned to a hero’s welcome in his home city yesterday after becoming the youngest world champion aged only 18. Hundreds of fans crowded the arrivals area of Chennai International Airport, cheering alongside banks of television cameras as Gukesh made his way out of the airport after victory in taking the World Chess Championship title. “It means a lot to bring back the trophy to India,” Gukesh told reporters, with garlands of flowers draped around his neck, brandishing the glittering trophy in his hand. “I can see the support and what it means to India, I
Zach LaVine on Thursday scored a season-high 36 points to lead the Chicago Bulls to a 117-108 upset victory against defending NBA champions the Boston Celtics, while LeBron James once again made history. LaVine went 11-of-19 from the floor and made six three-pointers while adding six rebounds and four assists for the Bulls, who improved to 13-15 for the season. “We’re a good team,” LaVine said. “We’re competitive and we’re a resilient group.” Ayo Dosunmu contributed 17 points for the Bulls, while Nikola Vucevic had 16 points and 14 rebounds for Chicago. The Bulls outscored Boston 35-22 in the fourth quarter to rally past
Real Madrid attacker Vinicius Junior on Tuesday won The Best FIFA Men’s Player award at a ceremony in Doha, while Barcelona midfielder Aitana Bonmati picked up the women’s prize for the second time. The award came two months after 24-year-old Vinicius was second in the Ballon d’Or, with Real Madrid electing to snub the ceremony when they found out beforehand that Manchester City midfielder Rodri was set to win the trophy. This time, the Brazilian was on hand to collect the prize in person as he is in Qatar with his club ahead of their Intercontinental Cup final clash with Mexico’s Pachuca. “Thank
