The world, at the feet of Lindsey Vonn

He skied so aggressively that it was difficult for him to brake to avoid hitting the billboards marking the competition zone. She was so convinced of the victory that she celebrated it with the famous falling asleep gesture patented by Stephen Curry. I knew that … It was his day. The one who decided to live again by announcing his return after six years of retirement. Lindsey Vonn, 41, won the first downhill of the World Cup season, in the Swiss resort of St. Moritz, expanding her legend. There are already 83 victories, and this last one makes her the oldest winner in the history of the competition, surpassing a record in force since 2012.

“I knew I was skiing fast, but you never know until the first race. “I think I was a little faster than expected,” the American, who celebrated furiously on the track before collapsing in tears on the podium, would later say. Last year, the first after his return, he closed it with a second place at the American resort of Sun Valley. A bitter podium, since this much-desired victory narrowly escaped him. This time it only took one shot. “I think I had a great race and now it’s time to rest. “I know what I must do: carry out my plan.” The American will still have to face two events in St. Moritz, a second downhill event this Friday and the super giant on Saturday, a discipline where she promises to be even stronger. “I’m very excited about super-G, because I think I ski better than downhill.” He also did not miss the opportunity to wreak havoc on his detractors: “I have to thank all the people who didn’t believe in me, because they motivate me a lot. I’m surprised people haven’t realized this yet. “Every time they talk bad about me, it makes me stronger.”

Vonn’s victory came by a commanding margin of 0.98 seconds and is a crucial step in her ultimate goal: to compete and seek a medal at the Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics. The one from Colorado consolidated his victory with a spectacular comeback in the second half of the course, where he reached a maximum speed of more than 114 km/h. She started with number 16 and in the first two sets she accumulated a deficit of up to 0.61 seconds to the leader at the time, Austrian Mirjam Puchner. However, the second half of the course was a colossal display of a skier almost in a trance. Vonn remembered her best times and crossed the finish line with a lead of 1.16. Only the Austrian Magdalena Egger then managed to come back to within a second of her (98 hundredths).

Vonn celebrated her last World Cup victory in 2018. Seven years, eight months and 28 days passed between that one and this one. This success reinforces his aspiration to participate in what would be his fifth Games. His Olympic record so far includes a gold medal (downhill) and a bronze medal (super giant) at Vancouver 2010 and another bronze in downhill at PyeongChang 2018.

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