Lindsey Vonn has opened up about some "horrifying" details of her Winter Olympics injury.
The 41-year-old skier suffered a devastating leg injury during the women's downhill at the Winter Games in Italy. Vonn, who was making a comeback to the Olympic sport in her 40s, had to be airlifted off of the mountain. She immediately underwent surgery.
Vonn, who appears on the latest cover of Vanity Fair, is looking back on her injury and the moments after. Vonn admitted that she nearly lost her leg.
The legendary U.S. skier was placed under the care of Tom Hackett, the head physician for Team USA Ski and Snowboard.
“Halfway through, I started sweating. I was just in such extreme pain. I screamed at the top of my lungs: Get me out,” Vonn, a three-time Olympic medalist, said.
“It just wouldn’t dissipate. It wouldn’t let up. It’s seared into my brain.”
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Vonn was found to have a severe fracture in her left leg that required surgical stabilization. She was taken to the hospital in a helicopter, though they had trouble landing, due to extreme media on site.
“It had somehow leaked that that’s where we were going,” Hackett told Vanity Fair. “Which was extraordinary. I didn’t tell anybody.”
Ultimately, they were able to land - and 20 doctors began working on Vonn's leg.
Vonn's pain was 'excruciating'
Vonn's pain was horrible, she admitted.
“It’s getting worse, and she’s not responding to monster amounts of fentanyl, morphine, oxycodone, like every narcotic you can imagine,” Hackett said.
Vonn, meanwhile, remembers a lot of it.
“Dr. Hackett was on my left. There were a bunch of doctors and nurses around me,” Vonn recalled. “He said, ‘Don’t worry, I’m going to save your leg. I got this. I’m scrubbing in.’”
Thankfully, Vonn's leg was saved - though it was close.
“I’m sure you’ve seen hot dogs or brats on a grill. They get more and more swollen. Then all of a sudden, they burst. They crack. That’s basically what happens with compartment syndrome,” Hackett said.
“There was a very significant chance that she was going to lose all function of her leg, if not the leg itself. Best-case scenario in those situations is, you might keep your leg, but it’s going to be useless.”
Vonn, meanwhile, has admitted that she will not be retiring. Instead, she hopes to make another comeback.
