Lindsey Vonn continued her impressive performance in the Milan Cortina Olympics season by securing third place in a World Cup downhill event in Val d’Isere, France, which was won by Cornelia Huetter. Vonn now boasts a trio of podium finishes – a victory, a runner-up position, and now a third-place finish – in the initial three World Cup downhill races held across Switzerland and France in just nine days.
Huetter, racing right after Vonn, consistently maintained a slight edge after the first split time and reached speeds of 126 kph (78 mph). She ultimately finished 0.26 seconds ahead of Kira Weidle-Winkelmann and 0.35 seconds clear of the American star, who is 41 years old. Val Grenier from St. Isidore, Ontario, was the top Canadian performer, coming in 24th.
Vonn has further solidified her lead in the World Cup downhill standings for the ongoing season. Despite challenging visibility conditions on the 2.8-kilometer (1 3/4-mile) O.K. course, 2018 Olympic champion Sofia Goggia posed a significant threat to Huetter.
Goggia, starting with bib number 14, initially displayed impressive speed but encountered a balance issue in a turn, causing her to lose time and finish 0.62 seconds behind Huetter in eighth place.
After noticing she was trailing early leader Weidle-Winkelmann, Vonn showed some disappointment but later congratulated Huetter on her victory with smiles and a hug. Huetter, a 33-year-old Austrian, has now claimed five downhill wins out of her 10 World Cup victories and secured the season-long title in 2024. She is expected to be a strong contender for a medal in the Olympic downhill event scheduled for February 8 in Cortina d’Ampezzo.
Vonn, who made a comeback last year after a hiatus of almost six seasons, is aiming for the Milan Cortina Winter Games, which would be her fifth Olympics. She has previously won gold in Vancouver 2010 and bronze in Pyeongchang 2018. Val d’Isere will host a super-G event on Sunday, following Vonn’s fourth-place finish in the discipline at St. Moritz the previous week, where Alice Robinson of New Zealand emerged victorious.