Vonn gets her paws on record 37th win

The Vail skier says her newp uppy has helped keep her spirits up during an especially lonely time.

cortina d’ampezzo, italy » For all her time basking in the leader’s spotlight, Lindsey Vonn also has another, more lonely side these days.

After breaking Annemarie MoserProell’s record for most World Cup downhill victories with her 37th in skiing’s marquee event Saturday, Vonn revealed that her recent purchase of a little puppy was made to combat depression.

Having split with boyfriend Tiger Woods last year and previously divorced fromher husband of four years, Thomas Vonn, Lindsey Vonn has found it challenging to keep her spirits up in between races.

“It’s really hard to be on the road. When I got divorced, it was hard that season, but this year especially, I’m older and I’m only able to go home once this year,” said Vonn, 31. “I’m pretty lonely, to be honest, and it’s been nice to have my dog. That’s what I needed.”

She picked up the 3-month-old cavalier king spaniel in Bologna and named her Lucy.

“I feel like sometimes when I have a bad day, it’s hard to go home,” Vonn added. “It’s pretty depressing just to be alone. It’s nice to have a friendly, smiling little puppy face excited for me to come home whether Iwin or lose.” On Saturday, it was a big win. Vonn beat Larisa Yurkiw of Canada by 0.28 seconds on the Olympia delle Tofane course— the same site where she eclipsed Moser-Proell’s overall women’s record of 62 victories a year ago— with a nearly flawless run amid windy conditions.

“It’s pretty awesome,” Vonn said. “I was really nervous today. I’ve won so much here, and there was just a lot of pressure.”

Lara Gut of Switzerland finished third, 0.67 behind, and maintained a 10-point lead on Vonn in the overall standings.