Mikaela Shiffrin 'so excited' to watch 'incredible' Lindsey Vonn race despite ACL injury - 'Straight up beautiful'

Lindsey Vonn will hit the slopes in the downhill event on Sunday, despite tearing an anterior cruciate ligament just nine days ago. Fellow American star Mikaela Shiffrin cannot wait to watch her team-mate compete following her setback and credited the 41-year-old for doing "incredible things" when faced with injury. Watch every event of Milano Cortina 2026 live on discovery+.

Mikaela Shiffrin has said that she is "so excited" to watch the legendary Lindsey Vonn battle through an ACL injury and compete at the 2026 Olympic Winter Games.

Vonn, 41, sustained an anterior cruciate ligament injury during a crash at Crans Montana just nine days before she is due to compete at Milano Cortina.

However, the 2010 downhill Olympic champion is keen to add to her medal haul and has already been active on the slopes, taking part in the downhill training events on Friday and Saturday.

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Despite her injury, the veteran looked in promising form, finishing 11th and third during the training runs, posting times of 1:40.33 and 1:38.28 respectively.

"I am, I'm so excited to watch. I think we all are," Shiffrin said ahead of her compatriot's seventh Olympic Games appearance, which will come on Sunday, February 8.

"This, her, I mentioned tenacity just now, her tenacity and grit and what she's showing up with this Olympics, staying true to her own values. That's just straight up beautiful.

"I'm so, so excited to see Lindsey and Breezy [Johnson] and Jackie [Wiles] and all of my team-mates competing. I'm excited to watch."

'Incredible stuff' - Vonn 'looking powerful' as she completes another training run

Video credit: TNT Sports

Shiffrin is gearing up to compete at the Games, in the team combined, giant slalom and slalom.

The 30-year-old has two Olympic gold medals to her name, which she won in the slalom at the Sochi Games in 2014 and the giant slalom at the 2018 Games in PyeongChang.

But, speaking on Saturday, Shiffrin seemed more excited to watch her American team-mate race over the weekend before her events kick into action on Tuesday, February 10.

"I trained today and I actually have a recovery day tomorrow. So, I will be cheering and riveted to the TV," Shiffrin said ahead of Vonn's bid for a downhill medal.

"I have 100% belief that anything is possible. She is. She's done just such incredible things, despite injury through injury before.

"I have a lot of belief and I'm just, I'm crossing my fingers for all my team-mates."

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As well as the downhill, Vonn will look to improve on the bronze super-G medal she won at the Sochi Games, which is set to be her final event of Milano Cortina, and perhaps the Olympics.

The American will compete in that event on Thursday, February 12, but before then, she will also take part in the team combined event for the first time at the Games.

She is set to feature in that on Tuesday, February 10, as she looks to add to her collection of three Olympic medals.

Vonn racing with ACL injury is 'absolute madness'

TNT Sports expert Ed Drake is still in disbelief that Vonn is racing.

Despite this, he has insisted that "she still goes in as favourite" to medal in the downhill event on Sunday.

"I think she's amazing, what she's done," Drake said. "There were 2,830 days between her last World Cup win and her first World Cup win when she came back to the world of ski racing, which is nuts.

"The ACL just doesn't seem possible; it is absolute madness."

'Amazing' Vonn still favourite for downhill glory - Drake

Video credit: TNT Sports

Analysing her training run on Saturday, he said: "If you look at the downhill training runs, you could see on that left-footed turn she was moving her body weight slightly away from that outside ski just to give herself that extra little bit of reassurance on the inside ski.

"But that's really risky. Too far, and you'll crash. It's fine margins anyway but they've just been dialled up."

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