Lindsey Vonn’s stellar return to alpine skiing at age 40 continued and a rising 22-year-old American teammate announced her arrival.
On Saturday in St. Anton, Switzerland, Vonn finished sixth place in her first World Cup downhill competition in nearly six years and followed that with a fourth-place finish Sunday in the Super-G, the oldest woman to finish in the top four of a World Cup race, as her impressive comeback to alpine skiing rolled on.
Meanwhile, U.S. teammate Lauren Macuga dazzled in the Super-G, skiing to her first career World Cup win in 1:17.51. She looked to be in disbelief as she crossed the line and saw the time, a dominant 0.68 seconds clear of Austria’s Stephanie Venier in second. Italy’s Federica Brignone took the final podium spot.
It was the biggest result yet for Macuga, who got hooked on speed skiing at 16 and has surged to the top of the U.S. ranks, putting her in prime position to make the 2026 Olympic team.
“I don’t even think the nerves have settled,” a jubilant Macuga said after the race. “I can’t believe it. I’m just waiting for it to hit me, and I know it’s going to. It’s just so exciting. This is a dream.”
Vonn, 18 years her senior, is hoping to join her. On an overcast day with low light that complicated the run, Vonn struggled at times during Sunday’s Super-G, nearly losing her balance in one spot, but still crossed the line in 1:18:75 out of the 31st starting position, just 0.32 seconds from a podium spot behind some of the world’s best speed skiers. Vonn has 28 World Cup Super-G wins in her career and just missed her 47th podium.
Lauren Macuga celebrates her run Sunday in the Super-G in St. Anton, Switzerland. Macuga earned her first-ever World Cup win. (Joe Klamar / AFP via Getty Images)
As she slowed to a stop after the race, Vonn shook her head, jaw-dropped, and acknowledged the crowd. Two months after announcing her return to competitive skiing, Vonn now has World Cup finishes of 14th, sixth and fourth. What once seemed like a long shot — Vonn racing at the 2026 Olympics in Cortina d’Ampezzo, Italy — is looking realistic.
On Saturday, in a strong, controlled run down the tricky downhill course, Vonn was consistent throughout, finishing in 1:16.66, 0.58 seconds off the lead.
It was nearly a top-five spot for Vonn there too, but 20-year-old Malorie Blanc of Switzerland stunned the field with a second-place run out of the 46th starting position in her first-ever World Cup race. Brignone won in 1:16.08, her first career World Cup downhill win and 30th overall. At 34, she also eclipsed Vonn as the oldest woman to win a World Cup downhill. Ester Ledecka of the Czech Republic took third.
Vonn, who started 32nd, was the top American on Saturday in her top discipline. Macuga finished ninth and Breezy Johnson 11th in the downhill for the U.S.
Last month, Vonn, the former Olympic and world champion, finished 14th in a Super-G race in St. Moritz, Switzerland, in her first World Cup race since retiring in 2019.
“I feel a little bit more confident and comfortable in downhill than I do in Super-G,” Vonn said Saturday, “and I know this hill really well, so I knew the challenges that it had today and with the snow conditions, where I needed to execute. I still made a couple of mistakes, I know I can be faster. But I think for the first downhill race in six years, it was a pretty good start.”
Still working her way back up the rankings, Vonn’s return to the World Cup scene came via wild-card entry. The International Ski and Snowboard Federation (FIS) — the sport’s governing body — allows for entries for retired skiers who have earned a minimum number of points while also achieving major benchmarks in the past, such as winning Olympic or world championship gold medals. But with it comes later starting positions in each race, which can make conditions more challenging than for skiers who start earlier.
Lindsey Vonn races Saturday in St. Anton, Switzerland. She finished sixth in her first World Cup downhill since January 2019. (Johann Groder / APA / EXPA / AFP via Getty Images)
“I haven’t started outside of the top 30 since I was probably 17 years old, 18 years old,” Vonn said, “and today with the conditions, it was definitely challenging. So I think, all things considered, it was a great start, and hopefully I can get back in the top 30 pretty quickly and improve my chances of success with a better starting number.”
Downhill has been Vonn’s specialty, bringing 43 of her 82 career World Cup race wins and her only Olympic gold medal, in Vancouver in 2010. She was the overall World Cup downhill champion eight times in nine years from 2008 to 2016. But by 2019, knee injuries had taken their toll, and Vonn walked away from skiing after the world championships that year. A knee replacement last year left her feeling pain-free, and she announced plans to return in November. She debuted at a lower-tier event in Colorado in early December to earn the points needed to compete in World Cup events.
Vonn retired as the most successful American World Cup skier of all time. Fellow American Mikaela Shiffrin — who is recovering from injuries sustained in a fall — has since become the all-time leader in World Cup wins, one away from 100.
Vonn, who has three Olympic medals overall, is seeking to make her fifth Olympic team. She also won world championship golds in downhill and Super-G in 2009 and was the overall World Cup champion three straight years from 2008 to 2010 and again in 2012.
The World Cup tour heads to Cortina d’Ampezzo, Italy, next week, which is also the venue for the 2026 Olympics. Vonn will be there, and if she keeps stacking results like these, she could be back competing at the Olimpia delle Tofane course — where she’s won 12 times — in the 2026 Games too.
GO DEEPER
Lindsey Vonn, at historic stop for women’s alpine, kicks off her World Cup return
(Photo of Lindsey Vonn after Sunday’s Super-G run: Joe Klamar / AFP via Getty Images)
