Vonn crashes ahead of swan song ski race

One of the hallmarks of Lindsey Vonn’s career has been how she bounces back from major crashes time and time again. So perhaps it’s fitting that the most successful female skier of all time will enter her last race before retiring following yet another tumble into the safety netting. Vonn straddled a gate mid-air during the super-G at the world championships Tuesday and ended up sliding down the hill face first.

“I’ve got a bit of a shiner. I feel like I’ve been hit by an 18-wheeler, but other than that, I’m great,” Vonn said with a laugh. “It’ll be fine. Sunday will be great.” Vonn quickly got up after the fall and skied down the hill under her own power.

The 34-year-old Vonn, the alltime leader in women’s World Cup wins, announced she’ll retire after Sunday’s downhill.

“Don’t count me out,” Vonn said. “I’ve got one more chance. Maybe I’ll pull off a miracle, maybe I won’t.”

Her legs are so battered she’ll have knee surgery for the seventh time soon after she retires — to repair the left knee ligament she tore during training in November. “I need complete reconstruction. That will be fun. Hopefully my last surgery,” Vonn said. “I’m screwed. I’ve known that for three years now,” Vonn said. “It’s only a matter of time. The analogy I was given was that I only have a certain amount of steps left. And I’ve run out of steps at this point. I know I’ll have pain for the rest of my life, but I wouldn’t change it. ... I got no cartilage, no meniscus. I got rods and plates and screws. There’s a lot going on. My head is still good, that’s all I need.”