Lindsey Vonn is officially back on the slopes! After announcing her return to competitive skiing, she’s diving into her first major race since 2019 this weekend in St. Moritz, Switzerland. Pretty exciting, right? But here’s the thing: why do some people always question athletes when they come out of retirement? It’s like, do they think she’s not capable anymore? Vonn has 82 World Cup victories under her belt, and that’s no small feat! Well, she chose to enter retirement in 2019 because of the physical toll from a series of major injuries, and now that she’s coming back, there’s a lot of talk.

So, when Vonn returned from the break, she did not clinch a medal in the first race, but does this matter? She has already qualified for the World Cup races, which is great! How many people can actually return to compete for a top-level competition after being out of the competition for so many years? And then there is all the negativity. Look, it’s like some people are just looking for ways to bash her. But now it is high time, and Vonn to chosen to speak up for herself.

Lindsey Vonn faces harsh criticism, but her comeback plans are bold enough to shut them

Recently, Blick Sport shared a post including an article on X about Pirmin Zurbriggen, a former World Cup alpine ski racer from Switzerland, who retired at the age of 27. Well, now he is sixty-one years old, and even a year and a half ago, he was running the half marathon. Great, isn’t it?  Now, when it comes to Lindsey Vonn’s comeback, he is not so certain. He fears that, at the age of 40, she might get seriously injured to the extent that she will not be able to participate in any sports again.

As Zurbriggen puts it, “I have the feeling that Vonn has not recognized the meaning and purpose of her other life in recent years. She has probably suffered from no longer being a celebrated champion. I find that a shame and sad, it hurts me for her – because it will catch up with her again at some point.”

Yes, in light of Vonn’s extensive history of injuries, it is quite a viable concern, but let’s get real: her decision to come back is quite daring. Throughout her life, her injuries include a torn anterior cruciate ligament, MCLs in both knees, a fractured leg, broken ankles, and even a spiral fracture of the humerus, together with the nerve injury. In addition, she has had her right arm, wrist, thumb, and pinkie fractured. If that was not enough, she has undergone both hamstring and patella removal surgeries.

After all that, she still says, “I might fall, but that’s life.” Recently, she had knee replacement surgery in 2024, and it was successful. So, she’s back on the slopes and ready to prove she’s still got it. But some, like Zurbriggen, aren’t so sure. He even asked, “Can Lindsey accept it if she comes 25th?” Pretty harsh, don’t you think?

Zurbriggen, however, seems to think that Vonn might not fully grasp the risks she’s taking. Sharing his own experience, he said, “I ran a half marathon a year and a half ago and was as happy as a child. It’s great when you can still do sport when you’re older.” He’s concerned that Vonn hasn’t accepted life after skiing and is holding on to something that’s already behind her. But Vonn, who’s no stranger to pushing through pain, isn’t backing down.

In fact, Vonn responded to the criticism of X, saying, “You know, I’m getting pretty tired of people predicting negative things about my future. It’s enough now. Bernard, Sonja and now Primin… is there a reason all former Swiss skiers think this way? Did they all become doctors and I missed it, because they talk like they know more than the best doctors in the world.” It was a sharp and sarcastic answer in order to stop the constant doubting of her abilities. And Sonja Nef, too has raised eyebrows to wonder if Vonn should risk her life to get back into competitions again in skiing. But Vonn slammed her too.

Ignoring the critics, Vonn sets her sights on St. Moritz

When Sonja Nef first heard about Lindsey Vonn’s comeback plans, she was shocked. “I thought: She can’t be that stupid. But she obviously is—unfortunately,” Nef said, really taken aback by the news. Nef, who also has an artificial knee joint, is seriously worried about what Vonn’s doing. “A fall could be devastating, because Lindsey has a knee made of metal. Period. No surgeon in the world would say that what Lindsey is doing is intelligent,” she added.

Another Swiss skiing legend Bruno Kernen with an artificial knee expresses the same worry admitting that skiing with a damaged knee is very dangerous. But Vonn isn’t letting the criticism get to her. She responded to both Nef and Kernen on X with a sarcastic jab, “Very nice words, Sonja and Bruno. I won’t forget them.”

Forget the critics, Lindsey Vonn’s got her sights set on what’s ahead. This weekend, she’s making her big comeback in St. Moritz, Switzerland. She is ready for the cup, which is evident after some great skiing at the FIS Fall Festival in Copper Mountain and a fast forerun at Beaver Creek. And you know, she will compete in two Super-G events on the 21-22 of December. Stay tuned for the updates!