Vonn impresses skiing to 6th place in first race since 2019

ST ANTON, Austria — Six years later it’s “Wow, Lindsey, wow!”

The racecourse commentator broadcasting Lindsey Vonn’s first World Cup downhill race since 2019 — the American is age 40 and has a titanium knee — summed up how impressive the ski great’s performance was.

Vonn skied into an impressive sixth place, wearing an unfamiliar low-ranked bib No. 32, in what she helped ensure was a race for the ages in the sun-soaked Austrian resort St. Anton.

The United States star — the greatest downhill racer in women’s World Cup history — was fastest in the first part of the course touching 124 kph (77 mph) and finished 0.58 seconds behind race leader Federica Brignone of Italy.

Vonn raised both arms in the air and flashed a big smile when she crossed the finish line and saw her time was fifth-fastest.

“That was fun,” Vonn told broadcaster Eurosport. “I still made a couple of mistakes, I know I can be faster.

“I haven’t started outside the top 30 since I was probably 17 years old. All things considered it was a great start,” she said.

Stunningly, Vonn was pushed down to sixth when World Cup downhill debutant Malorie Blanc wearing bib No. 46 raced into second place.

The 21-year-old Swiss prospect — who was not born when Vonn started her World Cup career — finished just 0.07 seconds behind Brignone.

“I was a little bit happier with fifth place than sixth place,” Vonn quipped.

It was the second race of this unexpected new chapter of Vonn’s storied career with a titanium knee she acquired in surgery last year.

She had been 14th in a super-G three weeks ago at St. Moritz, Switzerland.

“I feel a little bit more confident and comfortable in downhill than I do in super-G. And I know this hill really well,” said Vonn, who won at St. Anton in 2007.

Vonn won a record 43 downhills in her 82-win World Cup career. Her previous World Cup downhill had been in January 2019, placing ninth at Cortina d’Ampezzo, Italy. Several weeks later, she took bronze in the 2019 world championships at Are, Sweden, before retiring.

Vonn skied Saturday in picture postcard conditions, on a still and sunny day with -8 Celsius (18 Fahrenheit) temperatures. The Karl Schranz course was shortened to 1.9 kilometers (1.2 miles) because of heavy snowfalls after Thursday’s training run.

She is scheduled to start in a super-G on Sunday before moving on next week to Cortina, the signature women’s speed course where she has 12 career World Cup wins.