Winter Wonders

TRIUMPH IN TRAGEDY, LOVE ON THE ICE AND A COMEBACK STORY FOR THE HISTORY BOOKS: TEAM U.S.A. GOES FOR GOLD IN ITALY!

- GILLIAN TELLING,JOHNNY DODD,SKYLER CARUSO,LINDSAY KIMBLE,JULIE MAZZIOTTA

HYPE WOMAN "It's pretty aggressive rap," says Vonn (left, in 2022) of her prerace music. "My favorite is the 'Hustlin' remix by Rick Ross, Jay-Z and Jeezy."

LINDSEY VONN PROVES SHE’S A LEGEND (AGAIN)

When Lindsey Vonn announced that she was coming out of retirement in 2024—six years after she walked away from ski racing and focused on her girls’ sports foundation—there was a collective cheer and a collective “Why?” The answer is simple: because she could. After she’d suffered multiple torn ACLs and countless injuries throughout her career, a partial titanium knee replacement in 2024 gave the three-time Olympic medalist (including one gold) a new lease on life. “My body was so different,” she says. “I didn’t have any pain at all; my knee didn’t swell. I felt like I could do anything. The thought of ski racing again, something I loved to do so much, but without pain, was really exciting.” Plus, she didn’t love the way she’d been forced to call it quits. The possibility of a do-over with another string of victories tantalized her. “I built an amazing life and was really happy in retirement,” she says of mostly focusing on her philanthropy. “But I didn’t finish my career the way I wanted to. I was limping away when I wanted to finish strong.”