Sports
Lindsey Vonn Shares Shocking X-Ray After Leg Surgery and Details Recovery: ‘I’m Bionic For Real Now’
Lindsey Vonn, who suffered a terrifying accident 13 seconds into her run for the women’s downhill at the 2026 Winter Olympics, is sharing details from her latest surgery.
The 41-year-old skier, who returned to the U.S. on Tuesday, February 17, after a stint in an Italian hospital, shared photos and videos to her social media accounts on Friday, February 20, and said surgery took “a bit more than 6 hours to complete.”
“As you can see, it required a lot of plates and screws to put back together but Dr Hackett did an incredible job,” explained Vonn, whose Instagram post included X-rays of her leg that appears to have screws attached to the bone.
“Thank you Dr Viola for the surgery assist as well!!” she continued. “With the extent of the trauma, I’ve been struggling a bit post op and have not yet been able to be discharged from the hospital just yet… almost there.”
“Baby steps,” she concluded. “Will explain the injury and what it all means soon.”
Over on her X account, Vonn posted the X-ray photo and simply captioned the post, “I’m bionic for real now 🦾.”
On February 8, Vonn was evacuated from the scene at the Olympics by helicopter and, according to Reuters, she underwent surgery on a broken leg immediately after arriving at Ca’Foncello Hospital in Italy.
As Star previously reported, the athlete suffered a complex tibia fracture and underwent multiple surgeries following the crash, which left her with injuries typically found in motorcycle crash patients that can sometimes result in amputation.
In the comments section of her latest Instagram post, Vonn received will-wishes from fans and friends.
Comedian Chelsea Handler wrote, “Love you, you tough bh! Unreal what your body has been through and come back from,” while Olympic gold medalist Jutta Leerdam said, “You got this strong woman.”
One day after the crash, Vonn’s father, Alan Kildow, told the Associated Press that his daughter is done racing — at least if he has anything to do with it.
“She’s 41 years old and this is the end of her career,” said Kildow. “There will be no more ski races for Lindsey Vonn, as long as I have anything to say about it.”
