Lindsey Vonn responds to claims she was ‘selfish’ about participating in Olympics

Lindsay Vonn Again addressing the haters.

“None of this was in vain… This was not a dream… Sitting in a hospital bed, it seems so far away now…” Vaughan, 41, Written via Instagram On Saturday, February 21, she defended her decision to compete in the 2026 Winter Olympics despite suffering a torn ACL nine days earlier.

“But I did it. I came back. I won,” she continued in the caption, sharing a highlight video of her latest game. “I showed up and did what most people at my age thought was impossible – a partial knee replacement. These are memories I will always have and I’m grateful for every one of them. Every moment was amazing. Every moment was worth it.”

On January 30, Warne tore his cruciate ligament during the World Cup. Decided to participate in the Olympics Although the athlete publicly confirmed that the ligament was “100% gone”.

On February 8, she competed in her first Olympic Games in just 13 seconds. broke her left tibia After clipping the flag and crashing. She was airlifted from the pitch in Cortina d’Ampezzo, Italy, and taken to a nearby hospital where she underwent four surgeries.

She returned to the United States on Tuesday, February 17, and underwent several additional surgeries.

Critics lashed out at Vonn following her second injury, with some claiming she should not have competed in the Olympics after tearing her ACL and that someone else should have competed in her place.

Vonn was unfazed, listing her accomplishments in an Instagram post on Saturday.

“One thing that stings is when people say I’m selfish and should give my Olympic spot to someone else,” she said in the post. “So…I just wanted to review my season in a more positive light for all the haters out there who don’t understand what it means to earn a seat, just to reflect…1st downhill; 3rd SG; 2 downhill wins; every downhill podium all season; 7/8 podiums total (only one 4th place).”

She continued, “It’s not impossible until it’s done. I didn’t reach my end goal… but I still did so much. Thank you to those who believed! ❤️🙏🏻 #BELV.”

Vaughan He has previously defended himself on social media Even before she broke her leg at the Olympics, several people questioned the extent of her ACL injury.

“Haha thanks doc,” Vonn posted via X on February 7, in response to a sports medicine doctor questioning the status of her injury. “Up until last Friday, my ACL was fully functional. Just because it seems impossible to you, doesn’t mean it’s impossible. Yes, my ACL was 100 percent ruptured. Not 80 percent or 50 percent. It was 100 percent gone.”

Friday, Vaughan Shared new photo of her broken legX-rays showed a stabilizing brace on her bone that looked like a medallion.

“As you can see, it took a lot of plates and screws to put back together, but Dr. Hackett did an amazing job,” Vaughan posted on Instagram on Friday, along with video and X-rays of her time at the hospital. “Thank you also to Dr. Viola for your surgical assistance!”

She admitted she had struggled with her long recovery and said she had not been on her feet for more than a week.

After all this, she claimed to have suffered a second, more serious injury Not related to her original ACL tear.

“When my right arm got hooked inside the door, my rope was 5 inches too tight, twisting me and causing my car accident,” she shared on Instagram after the accident. “My ACL and past injuries had nothing to do with my car accident.”