Lindsey Vonn's coach expands on why he's confident she can ski in Winter Olympics, despite ACL rupture

American skier Lindsey Vonn ruptured the ACL in her left knee during a crash at a World Cup race in Crans-Montana, Switzerland, last Friday. Nearly a week later, she's box jumping.

Three-time Olympic medalist Vonn, 41, still plans to ski in the Winter Olympics in Milan Cortina, which begin Friday. She's scheduled to compete in three Alpine skiing events (the women's downhill, Super-G, and the new team combined event). Her first competition kicks off on Sunday at 4:30 a.m. ET. 

The timetable, of course, is ludicrous. Vonn, who hasn't undergone surgery, needed crutches on Monday. However, her coach, Chris Knight, expressed confidence in the skier after seeing her nail the early stages of her rehab. 

Chris Knight discusses Lindsey Vonn's injury recovery

"She's been doing box jumps, she's trying everything out, loads and stresses and things like that just to see where she's at and see how she feels and she's pulled up great from everything," Knight told Andrew Dampf of the Associated Press on Wednesday. "No swelling, no pain." 

Knight added Vonn's progress makes it an "easy decision" to keep letting her proceed. He acknowledged "nobody knows 100% what will happen," but he seems certain she'll be ready for the Games.

"I'm pretty confident that she can still pull off this dream," Knight said. "I've got no doubts in my mind this is going to be OK." 

Vonn spoke on Tuesday. Like Knight, she didn't seem overly concerned about the injury.

"It's not really on my radar screen right now. The Olympics are the only thing I'm thinking about," Vonn said, per Dampf. "Every day, my knee's gotten better. And every day we're discussing with a full medical team, doctors, physios, everyone, to make sure we're doing everything to make sure I am making smart and safe decisions." 

This isn't Vonn's first time making an unlikely comeback. Last season, she returned from a five-year retirement shortly after getting a titanium implant in her right knee. In December 2025, she won a World Cup downhill race in St. Moritz, Switzerland. But she's never done anything like this.