American downhill skier Lindsey Vonn says she has ruptured her left anterior cruciate ligaments but still “very hopeful” she can compete at the Winter Olympics in Italy.

The 41-year-old was airlifted to hospital in Switzerland on Friday after crashing in the final World Cup race before the Games.

The former Olympic champion said her knee feels “stable, strong and is not swollen” and she feels “confident” she will make the women’s downhill event in Cortina on Sunday.

“This is obviously not what I hoped for. I have been working really hard to come into these Games in a much different position,” she said in a press conference on Tuesday.

“I know what my chances were before the crash and I know that my chances aren’t the same as it stands now, but I know there is still a chance.

“As long as there is a chance, I’ll try. That’s where I am.”

The four-time world champion retired from the sport in 2019 but made a stunning comeback in December 2024 following a partial replacement of her right knee.

She arrived in Cortina at the top of the World Cup downhill standings, with two race wins and three more podium finishes, and as one of the favourites for the gold medal.

But this injury casts doubt over whether she will be able to compete and she said reaching the start gate of Sunday’s race would be her biggest comeback.

“This is not an unknown for me, I’ve done this before. I wish I wasn’t in this position but I am and I will do my best,” she said.

“I will not go home regretting not trying, I will do everything in my power to be in that starting gate.”

Vonn said she skied in Cortina on Tuesday and that her knee felt good with no pain but that she will not know for certain how she feels until she skis the downhill course.

“I know what my knee has felt like in previous injuries and I feel a lot better right now than I have in the past,” she said.