Concerns about racing at 40? Previous injuries? The World Cup grind? Vonn laughs.

Lindsey Vonn and Marcel Hirscher have much in common; for instance, each has claimed 20 World Cup globes, including eight overalls for the Austrian-born Hirscher and four overalls for the American Vonn. Both left the circuit in 2019, Hirscher at age 30 and Vonn at 34. And this winter both skiing legends elected to return to racing, following a summer decision by the International Ski and Snowboard Federation (FIS) to allow former top champions to return to the World Cup circuit within five years after retiring.

(Photo top: Lindsey Vonn, courtesy USSA)

But their two paths dramatically diverge after that. Hirscher’s return, in giant slalom at Sölden in October 2024, was judged as positive. He scored an honorable 23rd place, before struggling in the next two icy slalom races. His comeback attracted more spectators than usual at Sölden, and the television ratings were high. Unfortunately, the experiment ended prematurely after Hirscher tore the ACL in his left knee during training in early December. “Maybe I'm finally done with my journey,” he told the ski press.

Vonn, however, placed 14th in her first comeback competition, racing super G in St. Moritz, Switzerland, in mid-December, and in mid-January popped into the top ten. “It took her 20 seconds to get back into it, and then she was fine,” Chris Knight, Vonn's personal coach, told the Associated Press.

With 82 victories in all Alpine events on the World Cup circuit, Vonn remains one of the most successful ski racers in history, notable for her fighting spirit and resiliency, which allowed her to make impressive comebacks after painful injuries.

While Hirscher’s decision to return (skiing for the Netherlands, his mother’s home country) didn’t create too many emotional reactions inside the ski community, Vonn’s announcement was received with reservations by many observers. They worry about her physical potential at age 40 and the risks she may be taking with her right knee, which was surgically repaired (again) last spring. They seem unpersuaded by the fact that Vonn never quit training hard at the gym and that last winter she skied the treacherous Streif course at
Kitzbühel—at night under the lights.

Yet some racers are positive about her comeback. “She’s experienced enough to know what she is doing,” says Hirscher.

Marco Odermatt, currently the dominant speed skier on the circuit, watched Vonn train at Colorado’s Copper Mountain. “She is definitely skiing well, and pretty fast, too,” he says. “On some slopes she could do pretty well.” Vonn’s European fans eagerly await her appearance on classic courses in the Alps.

It’s key to remember that Vonn made a dramatic comeback once before. At the 2013 World Championships, she destroyed her right knee in the opening super G, while leading the World Cup downhill standings by 230 points—enough to retain the title by one point at the end of the season. She entered only three races the following winter but didn’t have the strength to do well. She also skipped the 2014 Olympics, then returned for the 2015 season and scored a victory in her second race.

There haven’t been many successful comebacks in modern Alpine ski racing, yet a few were pretty spectacular. Most notable were the returns of Annemarie Moser-Pröll and Jean-Claude Killy, both in the 1970s.

After crushing the rest of the field from 1971 to 1975, collecting five consecutive overall World Cup globes and several gold medals at FIS events, Moser-Pröll decided, at age 22, to step down after the 1975 World Cup finals at Val Gardena. She wanted to stay with her dad, Josef, then dying of cancer. He passed in 1976.

A few weeks before the start of the 1976–77 season, Moser-Pröll abruptly jumped back on race skis. She returned to form immediately, scoring third in the opening giant slalom at Val d’Isère in December, then winning the first downhill of the season at Cortina d’Ampezzo a few days later.

Moser-Pröll won 21 more World Cups, for a total of 62 career victories, during those four seasons, including her sixth overall World Cup title in 1979 and Olympic downhill gold at Lake Placid in 1980. She was only 27 when she retired after the World Cup finals at Saalbach in March 1980.

Jean-Claude Killy, who dominated the first two World Cup seasons in 1967 and ’68, and scored triple gold at the 1968 Grenoble Olympics, retired after the 1968 World Cup finals at Heavenly Valley, California. After a five-year holiday from racing, he joined the World Pro Skiing tour and clinched the Benson and Hedges professional world title at Aspen in March 1973. The season featured an intense battle with the previous champion, Spider Sabich, who was sidelined after injuring his back in a crash.

“I decided to get out of retirement in July 1972 as a kind of bet with the former Rossignol racing chief Gérard Rubaud, who was putting together a pro team,” Killy says. “He only offered me the job as a team manager since he didn’t believe in my potential to race again at a high level in the U.S. dual format. I have always enjoyed these kinds of personal challenges. I was only 29 at that time and in good physical shape. The start at Vail, at the end of November, was grueling as I had to get used to the format and my equipment was not working well. Fortunately, Rubaud came back to me later on and, in January 1973, I was able to win a dual slalom with his skis. It was really fun.”

“I can understand what motivates champions like Hirscher and Vonn, who are surely motivated by their strong passion for ski racing,” Killy continues. “For a downhiller, there is nothing as thrilling as having a demanding course just for you. I just hope that Lindsey remains healthy and having fun despite the dangers. She has been a colorful athlete, and her return should bring much excitement to the tour, which is always positive.” 

Contributor Patrick Lang has been reporting on the World Cup tour since 1969 and attended most of Lindsey Vonn's victories.

 

Breaking Through the Birds of Prey Barrier

A historic downhill run for women World Cup racers

On December 14, 2024, a sunny Saturday morning, France’s Laura Gauché skidded to a stop at the bottom of the Birds of Prey course in Beaver Creek, Colorado. And just like that, punctuated by a cloud of snow spray, it was official—Gauché was the first female competitor to ski the Birds of Prey in a World Cup downhill race.

“I’ve been coming to Beaver Creek to watch the men since I was four years old,” said U.S. Ski Teamer Bella Wright at a press conference the day before. “This is going to be a moment that we are going to look back on.”

Male racers have long run the course, which was conceived by Swiss ski champ and noted course designer
Bernhard Russi for the 1999 World Alpine Championships. It’s considered one of the most challenging downhill and super G tracks on the World Cup circuit. But aside from one super G in 2011 (won by Lindsey Vonn) in place of a cancelled race in France, the women didn’t have their chance until now.

Forty-three women competed in the downhill, which was won by Austria’s Cornelia Huetter. The racers started 154 feet lower down the course than the men did the week before. And some of the notorious jumps, like Golden Eagle, were modified, though the women hope they’d be bigger in the future. The downhill was followed by a super G the next day.

“Technically, it’s a very hard course, because you have to do everything right,” says American Lauren Macuga, who placed fourth. “Most of our other courses, there’s time to rest. There’s no time to rest in this course. It’s always coming at you.”

Among the fans cheering on the women: Former U.S. downhiller Steven Nyman, who retired in 2023. “Why not allow them to race after the men?” he says. “There’s so much preparation and so much effort that’s put into this hill, let’s utilize it another weekend.” He continues, “Technical skiers can really show their skill set here, versus just a classic downhill. I think it’s a great opportunity for the women and I’m excited to see more in the future.”

In another history-making moment, Lindsey Vonn was the last forerunner (before her official comeback the next week in St. Moritz). “I think this was the biggest crowd I’ve ever seen for a forerunner in my life,” she says.

If Vonn’s career restart goes according to plan, she may be able to join her teammates on more courses once reserved for the men. Says veteran U.S. downhiller Jackie Wiles, “I hope it opens the door to talking about the next step and doing some other venues. We’re here, we’re confident and we want to push those boundaries. It’s a really exciting time.” —Cindy Hirschfeld

Snapshots in Time

1961 Hang, Don’t Loop
Ever since the old days just after the war when we used to ski the Laurentians and snag the basket of our poles in brush, we have given up using the loops of poles for any other purpose than hanging them up when not in use. How many wrenched shoulders have resulted from looping straps around wrists? Our advice: forget the straps while skiing, except in very, very deep powder, in which it is easy to lose a pole forever. —Tik Nottingham, Boston, Massachusetts, “Pole Pointers” (Letters, SKI Magazine, October 1961)

1974 History Starts Now: Stenmark’s First World Cup Win
Ingemar Stenmark, an 18-year-old Swede, rallied from 23rd position today to win the opening men’s World Cup special slalom in which Geoff Bruce of Corning, N. Y., finished fourth after leading the field in the first run. The shy, freckle-faced Swede, in only his second season of World Cup skiing, raced down the second run 1.20 seconds faster than his closest rival for an over-all winning time of 1 minute 51.02 seconds. Andy Mill of Aspen, Colo., clocked 1:54.15 to finish 11th in the American men’s team’s best performance this year. —“Swede, 18, Wins Slalom” (New York Times,
December 18, 1974)

2017 Hell, no
At the age of 59, I wondered whether I might be too old to ski, or at least ski the way I did when I was younger. It turns out I was fine, but older people have a lot to consider before downhill skiing. And not all of it bad. About 18 percent of skiers in 2016 were over the age of 55, according to Michael Berry, president of the National Ski Areas Association, up from 17 percent in the previous year. “Ten or 15 years ago, we did some research, and we anticipated this huge exit of Baby Boomers that was going to materially impact the total number of skiers,” Berry said. “Our predictive analysis proved to be wrong.”— CAROLEE BELKIN WALKER "ARE BABY BOOMERS TOO OLD TO SKI? PROBABLY NOT." (WASHINGTON POST, FEBRUARY 24, 2017)

2023 Independently Successful
In the ski industry in recent years, the murmurs around every independent resort have been the same: How long until Vail Resorts Inc. or Alterra Mountain Co. comes and plants its flag? In 2008, Alterra didn’t exist and Vail owned just five mountains. Today, the two represent more than half the skiable terrain in the U.S.—and counting. But in 2023, it’s looking likely that independent mountains will have a moment to shine. While residents around many newly acquired Alterra and Vail resorts criticize the corporate tendency to put profit above community, and visitors grow frustrated with massive crowds, indies are drawing new customers. — Gordy Megroz, “Rise of the Indies” (Bloomberg Business Week, October 23, 2023)

2024 FIS Grounds Record Jump
Ryōyū Kobayashi might have bettered the world ski jump record by nearly 40 meters on Wednesday, but the International Ski and Snowboard Federation (FIS) says it won’t recognize the Japanese jumper’s landmark effort as it didn’t meet the governing body’s competition conditions. The 27-year-old launched into a jump that saw him fly around 955 feet (291m) through the air. While Kobayashi’s jumps “showcase an extraordinary athlete’s performance, a ski flying competition must be based on a FIS-certified distance measuring system and take place on a ski flying hill homologated by FIS in order to stand up to comparison with other flights and be eligible for an official ski flying record,” the FIS stated. — Amy Woodyatt, “Ryōyū Kobayashi flies 291 meters through the air in landmark ski jump” (CNN, April 25, 2024)