Vonn airlifted to hospital after crash in Switzerland

US alpine skier Lindsey Vonn was airlifted to hospital after crashing in her final downhill race in Switzerland before the Winter Olympics.

The race was part of the FIS Alpine Ski World Cup, but was cancelled for “adverse conditions” after Vonn became the third skier of the day to crash.

She lost control after landing a jump on the course in Crans-Montana, before colliding into the safety netting.

“I know she hurt her knee, I talked to her. I don’t know if it’s really heavy and (if) she won´t miss the Olympics,” said International Ski and Snowboard Federation CEO Urs Lehmann.

Women’s World Cup race director Peter Gerdol said that worsening visibility was behind the decision to cancel the race.

Vonn, 41, was in winning form before the start of the Games in Milan Cortina next week, but after the crash looked in pain and was pictured clutching her left knee.

“She has some pain so it’s better to have some checks,” Vonn’s coach, two-time Olympic champion Aksel Lund Svindal, told Reuters.

“The physio did some checks. They seemed OK, but there were things he was not 100% sure, so it was good to have it checked [at the hospital].”

The American, who was Olympic downhill champion in 2010, made a comeback last season after nearly six years away from skiing.

She did not compete in the 2022 Games in Beijing due to an ACL injury, but she later returned last season after a partial knee replacement.

In December last year she became the oldest downhill ski World Cup winner with her victory in St Moritz, Switzerland.

This will be a major concern for Vonn, with the downhill scheduled for 8 February, leaving little time for recovery.