Vonn blows field away in downhill

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This article was published 18/02/2010 (6091 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

WHISTLER, B.C. — How’s that for a "Say Cheese" moment?

U.S. skiing star Lindsey Vonn, whose therapy for a painful shin bruise included cheese compresses to reduce swelling, couldn’t stop flashing her pearly whites Wednesday after winning the women’s Olympic downhill in stunningly dominant fashion.

On a day when her chief rivals simply struggled to stay upright, let alone rise to the challenge, Vonn tamed the wildest, most physically taxing downhill courses female skiers have faced all season.

Starting No. 16 on a crisp, blue-sky day that was a welcome change from the rain, warm temperatures and fog that enveloped Whistler in the last week, Vonn blistered the bumpy, 2,939-metre course in one minute 44.19 seconds.

She fell onto her back in the finish area upon seeing her time, eventually tossing her skis away and getting a big hug from Thomas Vonn, her husband and coach.

"I dreamed about what this would feel like, but it’s so much better in real life," said Vonn, who was bouncing between elation and tears in the finish area after winning her first Olympic medal. "This is everything that I ever wanted and hoped for."

Vonn was 0.56 seconds faster than teammate Julia Mancuso, who had laid down the downhill run of her life from the No. 10 starting spot, and was 1.46 seconds ahead of bronze medallist Elisabeth Goergl of Austria.

Amazingly, Vonn said "it wasn’t the perfect run by any means. It was a little ragged, but it was fast."

Emily Brydon of Fernie, B.C., who finished 3.69 seconds off the pace in 16th place, had nothing but compliments for the two-time reigning World Cup overall champion.

"She’s superhuman in a sense," Brydon said of Vonn. "That’s what every athlete strives for is that kind of dominance and consistency. And to do it under pressure, under good conditions and bad conditions, tough courses and easy courses, it’s a real testament to what an amazing athlete and ski racer she is. She’s going to march to her spot in history."

At a news conference after her victory, Vonn, who’ll compete in today’s super combined and Saturday’s super-G events, said the shin injury she suffered in training was still causing her pain.

Recent poor weather at Whistler that kept delaying races and training runs gave her more time to heal.

Wednesday’s downhill was on Franz’s Run — hard and bumpy and so tough technically that the skiers were rarely able to get into their downhill tuck. It caused five skiers to crash. One of them was Anja Paerson of Sweden, who had a terrific run going and might have grabbed second away from Mancuso before wiping out.

For Vonn, the gold medal was something she’d been dreaming about since a disastrous experience at the Turin Games in 2006.

She was a medal favourite there, but sustained severe bruising in a downhill training run and could muster just eighth-, seventh- and 14th-place finishes in downhill, super-G and giant slalom, respectively.

But she has been tearing up the World Cup circuit the last three seasons.

A marketing heartthrob, she was the most hyped of athletes coming into the 2010 Games. She was projected to win three gold medals — in downhill, super-G and super combined — and potentially reach the podium in giant slalom and slalom.

 

— Canwest News Service