Born in 1984, Vonn had her earliest experiences on skis falling down and picking herself up in a state not especially known for mountains, Minnesota. But with a grandfather and a father who were competitive skiers, little Lindsey started carving the local hill at age three. "I began racing at seven, and by nine I was doing international events," she remembers. Her talent as a small child proved so big that the whole family considered moving in order to make better training opportunities possible. Eventually her parents, brothers and sister all moved to Vail.
The youngster improved quickly. At age 14, she became the only female American ever to win Italy's Trofeo Topolino contest – dubbed "Junior-Junior Worlds" – and her name was entered into the Golden Book of Champions alongside girls who had grown up to win the World Cup Overall title.
In her initial year of top-level competition, 15-year-old Lindsey took the podium at several NorAm events. Her first International Ski Federation (FIS) victory came in 2001; that same year she also captured a Super Series win, as well as the bronze in Combined at the U.S. National Championships. In the same season she raced in her first Slalom World Cup. In the Super G in Val d'Isere she won her first World Cup points coming 26th.
When Lindsey was named a member of the U.S. Olympic Ski Team in 2002, she was still under the radar, but a sixth-place finish in Combined put her on everyone's screen. She focused all her energy into building speed and consistency. The effort paid off with two U.S. National Championships, plus numerous medals at the Junior World Championships and World Cup events.
Her progress continued in 2003, with a silver at the Junior World Championships, as well as a silver and a bronze at the U.S. Nationals. She continued to progress in 2003/04, winning two golds at the U.S. Championships, two medals at Junior Worlds, and making her first World Cup podium in Cortina d'Ampezzo.
The following season Lindsey competed fully backed by Red Bull for the first time. The new training program brought quick results that were clearly visible: Lindsey captured her first victory in a World Cup race and attended her first World Championships. She logged 13 top-five finishes in World Cup and World Championship events, standing on the podium six times, ending the season ranked sixth overall, in the world. Determined to capitalize on the momentum as she headed into an Olympic year, Lindsey spent the summer training intensely in Oregon and Chile. The effect? Better form than ever before.
BUILDING SPEED
Lindsey's momentum was building in the 2005/06 season. She dashed out of the gates in December to capture the victory in the Downhill events of Lake Louise, Canada and Val d'Isere, France.
The traditional award of this race in France is a cow, which she happily received. The cow is appropriately named Olympe, and Lindsey still keeps the pet on a farm near the U.S. Ski Team's training base in Austria.
"Last time I went to the Olympics, I was basically there for the experience, and it was really fun," Lindsey recalls. But 2006 was a different story. As she headed to Torino, she was a top hopeful for the Women's U.S. Ski Team. Unfortunately, this would not be her time. During a practice run, Kildow had a crash, which sent her to hospital. She was shaken but released. Lindsey hadn't come this far not to race. She finished 8th in Downhill, 7th in Super G, and 14th in the Slalom, despite the harrowing crash.
And there it was again, the attitude of never letting set backs get you down: "That happened for a reason," she said. "It was a lost opportunity, but it gave me the fuel and motivation that I need."
And she needed it: Lindsey crashed again in Austria, in October of 2006. "I had a bit of a bone bruise. It hasn't totally cleared up, but it's not preventing me from skiing," she commented. Apparently not. She came back to notch a first in Downhill at Lake Louise (a place where she always seems to shine) with seconds in another Downhill and Super G. A victory at Lake Louise followed in the Val d'Isere Downhill, one in the San Sicario/Sestriere Super G and six other podiums. Two of the most valuable she celebrated in Are: At the World Championships Lindsey won two silvers, in Downhill and in the Super G. The season ended as usual with an injury from a fall. This time: a pulled tendon.
"That injury was to my right knee and after a little over a month my knee was back to normal," Lindsey explained. "What was not normal was my left knee, which I had injured in October. I skied on the injured knee though the season with hardly any problems but when I stopped skiing I realized that there was something wrong. After consulting Dr. Sterett in Vail, Colorado, it was decided that I needed arthroscopic surgery to remove some cartilage that had broken off and was the cause of my persisting problems."
After the operation in May, Lindsey got herself trained back into form – as usual with even more ambitious goals than before: "A big dream of mine has always been to win a Downhill or Super G World Cup title. Next season I'm hoping to accomplish that dream, and I'm also hoping to compete for the Overall title," she said. Her biggest dream is still the Olympic Games in Vancouver: "Since I was nine I've been dreaming about winning there."
THERE'S LIFE WITHOUT SKIS, TOO
Today Lindsey Vonn is the role model for American girls, as Olympic Gold Medalist Picabo Street once was to her. "There are so many young kids that write me letters. I'm their hero. That's amazing to see." But she's more of a celebrity in Europe's alpine nations, where skiing is the passion of the entire population. "It's pretty cool, especially in Austria. They all recognize me. They ask for autographs and ask about the cow. It's not in a stalking way. So many people are just ski fans," Lindsey says, with a chuckle. The interest and support of her fans, however, is contrasted with the loneliness of the long racing season trips, during which she mainly lives in Austria. "I never get to see my friends which sucks," she says and jokes, "Luckily I've got Olympe, my cow." Kildow keeps her exclusive pet with farmer foster parents not far from her winter home in Kirchberg. Last year she even jumped in as godmother for "Sunny," Olympe's first calf.
Liking Lindsey is very easy for most of the people who meet her – which is why she's also popular with her rivals in a way few others are in the skiing circus. Some of her adversaries, the German Maria Riesch for example, have become real friends. Maybe it has to do with the fact that she's remained a regular "girl next door" despite her success – apart from the tiny fact that she loves to race down icy slopes on narrow slats at tempos more suited to the freeway.
Lindsey likes to play tennis and ride her bike; she reads books and listens to rap music ("Kanye West's 'Stronger' motivates me during training"); she loves Myspace and "Law & Order", sushi and "Kaiserschmarrn." Lindsey, however, has another personality trait which some other top athletes don't have: She can laugh at herself. "Bode Miller is responsible for my nickname," she discloses, for example, in an interview. "We went bowling together in Innsbruck with Thomas, then still my boyfriend, and he wrote my name wrong: ,Kildon.' From that developed Don Don, The Don and a few other modifications." In another interview she talked about her problems with decorating her new house in Park City. "I seem to be lacking the female gene that enables the majority of women to pick and choose colors and designs that will fill their home."
Lindsey's new home, which she moved into with her long-time boyfriend Thomas Vonn in summer 2007, also marks a new phase of life for her. On September 29th, they got married – Thomas also being an (ex)-racing skier is now her manager ¬– in a ceremony in Park City. "Thomas and I are a great team," Lindsey says, "and skiing is actually the one thing that we hardly ever have conflicts over. He understands the stresses and sacrifices of skiing and he's the one who can get me through the day when I am feeling down." Of course it's not easy to keep a relationship going when you're constantly travelling, Lindsey concedes. But why should a happy relationship be easier to have than an Olympic victory? "It's a lot of effort," she says, "but if you work hard, it will pay off in the end."
The youngster improved quickly. At age 14, she became the only female American ever to win Italy's Trofeo Topolino contest – dubbed "Junior-Junior Worlds" – and her name was entered into the Golden Book of Champions alongside girls who had grown up to win the World Cup Overall title.
In her initial year of top-level competition, 15-year-old Lindsey took the podium at several NorAm events. Her first International Ski Federation (FIS) victory came in 2001; that same year she also captured a Super Series win, as well as the bronze in Combined at the U.S. National Championships. In the same season she raced in her first Slalom World Cup. In the Super G in Val d'Isere she won her first World Cup points coming 26th.
When Lindsey was named a member of the U.S. Olympic Ski Team in 2002, she was still under the radar, but a sixth-place finish in Combined put her on everyone's screen. She focused all her energy into building speed and consistency. The effort paid off with two U.S. National Championships, plus numerous medals at the Junior World Championships and World Cup events.
Her progress continued in 2003, with a silver at the Junior World Championships, as well as a silver and a bronze at the U.S. Nationals. She continued to progress in 2003/04, winning two golds at the U.S. Championships, two medals at Junior Worlds, and making her first World Cup podium in Cortina d'Ampezzo.
The following season Lindsey competed fully backed by Red Bull for the first time. The new training program brought quick results that were clearly visible: Lindsey captured her first victory in a World Cup race and attended her first World Championships. She logged 13 top-five finishes in World Cup and World Championship events, standing on the podium six times, ending the season ranked sixth overall, in the world. Determined to capitalize on the momentum as she headed into an Olympic year, Lindsey spent the summer training intensely in Oregon and Chile. The effect? Better form than ever before.
BUILDING SPEED
Lindsey's momentum was building in the 2005/06 season. She dashed out of the gates in December to capture the victory in the Downhill events of Lake Louise, Canada and Val d'Isere, France.
The traditional award of this race in France is a cow, which she happily received. The cow is appropriately named Olympe, and Lindsey still keeps the pet on a farm near the U.S. Ski Team's training base in Austria.
"Last time I went to the Olympics, I was basically there for the experience, and it was really fun," Lindsey recalls. But 2006 was a different story. As she headed to Torino, she was a top hopeful for the Women's U.S. Ski Team. Unfortunately, this would not be her time. During a practice run, Kildow had a crash, which sent her to hospital. She was shaken but released. Lindsey hadn't come this far not to race. She finished 8th in Downhill, 7th in Super G, and 14th in the Slalom, despite the harrowing crash.
And there it was again, the attitude of never letting set backs get you down: "That happened for a reason," she said. "It was a lost opportunity, but it gave me the fuel and motivation that I need."
And she needed it: Lindsey crashed again in Austria, in October of 2006. "I had a bit of a bone bruise. It hasn't totally cleared up, but it's not preventing me from skiing," she commented. Apparently not. She came back to notch a first in Downhill at Lake Louise (a place where she always seems to shine) with seconds in another Downhill and Super G. A victory at Lake Louise followed in the Val d'Isere Downhill, one in the San Sicario/Sestriere Super G and six other podiums. Two of the most valuable she celebrated in Are: At the World Championships Lindsey won two silvers, in Downhill and in the Super G. The season ended as usual with an injury from a fall. This time: a pulled tendon.
"That injury was to my right knee and after a little over a month my knee was back to normal," Lindsey explained. "What was not normal was my left knee, which I had injured in October. I skied on the injured knee though the season with hardly any problems but when I stopped skiing I realized that there was something wrong. After consulting Dr. Sterett in Vail, Colorado, it was decided that I needed arthroscopic surgery to remove some cartilage that had broken off and was the cause of my persisting problems."
After the operation in May, Lindsey got herself trained back into form – as usual with even more ambitious goals than before: "A big dream of mine has always been to win a Downhill or Super G World Cup title. Next season I'm hoping to accomplish that dream, and I'm also hoping to compete for the Overall title," she said. Her biggest dream is still the Olympic Games in Vancouver: "Since I was nine I've been dreaming about winning there."
THERE'S LIFE WITHOUT SKIS, TOO
Today Lindsey Vonn is the role model for American girls, as Olympic Gold Medalist Picabo Street once was to her. "There are so many young kids that write me letters. I'm their hero. That's amazing to see." But she's more of a celebrity in Europe's alpine nations, where skiing is the passion of the entire population. "It's pretty cool, especially in Austria. They all recognize me. They ask for autographs and ask about the cow. It's not in a stalking way. So many people are just ski fans," Lindsey says, with a chuckle. The interest and support of her fans, however, is contrasted with the loneliness of the long racing season trips, during which she mainly lives in Austria. "I never get to see my friends which sucks," she says and jokes, "Luckily I've got Olympe, my cow." Kildow keeps her exclusive pet with farmer foster parents not far from her winter home in Kirchberg. Last year she even jumped in as godmother for "Sunny," Olympe's first calf.
Liking Lindsey is very easy for most of the people who meet her – which is why she's also popular with her rivals in a way few others are in the skiing circus. Some of her adversaries, the German Maria Riesch for example, have become real friends. Maybe it has to do with the fact that she's remained a regular "girl next door" despite her success – apart from the tiny fact that she loves to race down icy slopes on narrow slats at tempos more suited to the freeway.
Lindsey likes to play tennis and ride her bike; she reads books and listens to rap music ("Kanye West's 'Stronger' motivates me during training"); she loves Myspace and "Law & Order", sushi and "Kaiserschmarrn." Lindsey, however, has another personality trait which some other top athletes don't have: She can laugh at herself. "Bode Miller is responsible for my nickname," she discloses, for example, in an interview. "We went bowling together in Innsbruck with Thomas, then still my boyfriend, and he wrote my name wrong: ,Kildon.' From that developed Don Don, The Don and a few other modifications." In another interview she talked about her problems with decorating her new house in Park City. "I seem to be lacking the female gene that enables the majority of women to pick and choose colors and designs that will fill their home."
Lindsey's new home, which she moved into with her long-time boyfriend Thomas Vonn in summer 2007, also marks a new phase of life for her. On September 29th, they got married – Thomas also being an (ex)-racing skier is now her manager ¬– in a ceremony in Park City. "Thomas and I are a great team," Lindsey says, "and skiing is actually the one thing that we hardly ever have conflicts over. He understands the stresses and sacrifices of skiing and he's the one who can get me through the day when I am feeling down." Of course it's not easy to keep a relationship going when you're constantly travelling, Lindsey concedes. But why should a happy relationship be easier to have than an Olympic victory? "It's a lot of effort," she says, "but if you work hard, it will pay off in the end."
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