Winter Olympics 2026

[contesstant]

I mean, her competing on a torn ACL was always going to be controversial and I’m sure Lindsey knew that. But I dare anybody to put in that level of preparation and training and actually make the team and not try to find a way to compete no matter what. In the end, her decision to compete isn’t a right or wrong. Right vs. wrong implies it’s a moral decision and it simply isn’t. The only decision that mattered was Lindsey’s personal decision on how much risk she was or wasn’t willing to take. I do think you’re right, that I’ve seen so many comments from people who have probably never put on a pair of skis. But while we’re all quarterbacking - I’m still not 100% convinced her ACL had anything to do with the fall. To me, it looked like she caught the gate and that rotated her in the air and at those speeds there is just no opportunity to correct mid-air and she came down at the wrong angle. And it isn’t like she was the only skier to fall. I appreciate her statement quoted above. It’s a really lovely statement and it’s nice that it sounds like she’s in good spirits. She’s been so good for women’s skiing but also for women’s sports more generally. I wish her nothing but the best in her recovery.

I agree. It was her decision, and the impact of that decision did not carry horrific consequences to anyone but her. I do question whether the ACL had some sort of impact (I think it really could have subconsciously) but that’s neither here nor there. Her life, her choice and she knew and accepted the consequences. I love that she chose to amplify the thrill of standing at the starting gate. Her legacy will not be diminished by this one decision. She won what, 3 World Cup downhills during this comeback? What a bad*as warrior!

 

[Christy]

Daniel Hemetsberger of Austria (he went #1 in the men's downhill yesterday) also competed without an ACL. He also crashed in training and was super beat up for the Olympic race. Ones of his eyes wasn't fully open. I did not see any criticism of him. Maybe because he didn't crash in his downhill, maybe because he's a man...

 

[Jilly]

Lindsay caught the gate with her right arm. She's said it...5" too close.

As for Daniel - more like "Daniel who"? There was so much media about Lindsay her every move, every look etc was examined, critiqued and evaluated by the pundits. She took over the "airways" and unless it was your countries athlete in your local media, nothing was mentioned about anyone else.

All in all, I'm tired of Lindsay. There are so many other athletes that deserve to be mentioned for their achievements, like Daniel.

And Breezy!!

 

[MissySki]

Daniel Hemetsberger of Austria (he went #1 in the men's downhill yesterday) also competed without an ACL. He also crashed in training and was super beat up for the Olympic race. Ones of his eyes wasn't fully open. I did not see any criticism of him. Maybe because he didn't crash in his downhill, maybe because he's a man...

I’m with you, there is a very real double standard involving gender here. It seems to especially make certain people uncomfortable that a woman in her 40s was pushing herself so hard, oh and of course that she wasn’t selfless enough to give up her spot to “a younger healthier athlete”. Suddenly the whole internet is sooooooooo amazingly generous in what THEY would have done in this situation to boost another young woman’s career. It’s SO obnoxious! The worst part is the ones I see saying this stuff and being the most critical are not just men (who like whatever yeah predictable fragile ego boys, who cares), there is also a real contingent of older women who have the same thing to say. And the only way I can see to rationalize it is that they are just so uncomfortable with the idea of a middle aged woman doing what she has been in comparison to the status queue. That she refused to fade away and take up less space at an age some consider over the hill and when women seemingly become more i visible, she has REFUSED to do so. While the same journey has been inspiring the hell out of another segment of middle aged and older women, thank goodness and I’m fully on that ride and not getting off ever. It’s just a very interesting dynamic that I am so surprised by, but I guess I also shouldn’t be.

 

[OlderButWiser]

I was rooting for Lindsay's dream of Olympic victory and so sad for her when I saw the news. I I just saw her insta post and her thoughts just seem so lovely and balanced (truncated post below). View attachment 26111

Thank you for posting this.

 

[OlderButWiser]

Daniel Hemetsberger of Austria (he went #1 in the men's downhill yesterday) also competed without an ACL. He also crashed in training and was super beat up for the Olympic race. Ones of his eyes wasn't fully open. I did not see any criticism of him. Maybe because he didn't crash in his downhill, maybe because he's a man...

Because he is a man, period. Society has a separate set of standards for women in everything [sigh].

 

[RachelV]

Here's a link to the entire Instagram post that @wernerslab screenshotted:

L I N D S E Y • V O N N on Instagram: "Yesterday my Olympic dream did not finish the way I dreamt it would. It wasn’t a story book ending or a fairy tail, it was just life. I dared to dream and had worked so hard to achieve it. Because in Downhill

1M likes, 46K comments - lindseyvonn on February 9, 2026: "Yesterday my Olympic dream did not finish the way I dreamt it would. It wasn’t a story book ending or a fairy tail, it was just life. I dared to dream and had worked so hard to achieve it. Because in Downhill ski racing the difference...

www.instagram.com

I also thought her statement was really lovely. And I agree that the Monday morning quarterbacking around all of this would be very different if she were a dude.

 

[altagirl]

Lindsay caught the gate with her right arm. She's said it...5" too close.

As for Daniel - more like "Daniel who"? There was so much media about Lindsay her every move, every look etc was examined, critiqued and evaluated by the pundits. She took over the "airways" and unless it was your countries athlete in your local media, nothing was mentioned about anyone else.

All in all, I'm tired of Lindsay. There are so many other athletes that deserve to be mentioned for their achievements, like Daniel.

And Breezy!!

I do feel like the sad thing is that Lindsey dominated all the headlines and the whole vibe of the race, and Breezy's win felt like an afterthought, totally overshadowed, and that's a shame.

 

[MissySki]

I do feel like the sad thing is that Lindsey dominated all the headlines and the whole vibe of the race, and Breezy's win felt like an afterthought, totally overshadowed, and that's a shame.

Honestly, it would have been the same if LV just finished and didn't crash or if she finished and medaled lower than Breezy, etc. I think? Because then the story would have been how she accomplished her goal of skiing in the Olympics however it played out, with her unbelievable comeback in general and if she'd done any of it with no ACL as well? Forget it, that's media gold. It was just such an enormous story coming into the Olympics, I don't think anyone else had a chance of overshadowing it no matter which angle it took.

 

[altagirl]

Honestly, it would have been the same if LV just finished and didn't crash or if she finished and medaled lower than Breezy, etc. I think? Because then the story would have been how she accomplished her goal of skiing in the Olympics however it played out, with her unbelievable comeback in general and if she'd done any of it with no ACL as well? Forget it, that's media gold. It was just such an enormous story coming into the Olympics, I don't think anyone else had a chance of overshadowing it no matter which angle it took.

Very true ...

 

[VickiK]

...they are just so uncomfortable with the idea of a middle aged woman doing what she has been in comparison to the status queue. That she refused to fade away and take up less space at an age some consider over the hill and when women seemingly become more i visible, she has REFUSED to do so. While the same journey has been inspiring the hell out of another segment of middle aged and older women, thank goodness and I’m fully on that ride and not getting off ever.

Hear hear.

There's a good book on older women pushing physical boundaries in outdoor pursuits--
Tough Broad: From Bird-Watching to BASE Jumping—How Outdoor Adventure Improves Our Lives as We Age
by Caroline Paul (2024)

 

[Christy]

I'm happy that Lindsey has gotten all the attention as I think that's good for Mikaela. I was dreading the narrative they were going to put together about her with endless clips of her sitting by the side of the run in Beijing. I'm not sure they are focusing on her (Mikaela) any more than they are on Erin Jackson, Chloe Kim and Chock/Bates though, and certainly less than Ilian Malinin. (I am probably ready to stop hearing the phrase Quad God.) Also my friends who know nothing about skiing wanted to talk about Lindsey with me due to all of the attention, and I loved that.

 

[Christy]

SPOILERS FOR THE WOMEN'S TEAM COMBINED


















So many good skiers had not great days at the office today. Sofia Goggia crashing. Petra Vhlova skiing for the first time in 2 years only to miss a gate. Mikaela just not skiing fast enough. It was exciting to see US women get bronze!

 

[lisamamot]

Oh, the Monday morning quarterbacking on the internet about Lindsey's crash from people that don't know anything about the sport

This has been driving my daughter and I absolutely nuts. Based on our up close and personal experience with ACL tears, most people have zero idea what they are talking about.

When my daughter tore her meniscus right out of the root on ACL tear #3, well, that is another story! They had to drill a hole in her tibia to reattach it and although she was unbelievably strong through it all, the meniscus discomfort is real.

I’m still not 100% convinced her ACL had anything to do with the fall.

My daughter tore her ACL (right, left, right) three years in a row in soccer, first at the end of her senior year in high school and then freshman and sophomore years in college. Each time her PT, and the whole team at Mass General in Boston, were astounded by how stable she was. When you have that much muscle supporting the knee it isn't like your average person tearing their ACL. Lindsey's muscles more than compensated and that is why her team was confident she could ski on it.

I 100% believe Lindsey - as a competitive athlete she took too aggressive of a line and catching the gate is what caused the crash.

 

[Aerlind]

certainly less than Ilian Malinin. (I am probably ready to stop hearing the phrase Quad God.)

If you're able to stream on Peacock and click the "Venue Feed" (works for both live and replays), there's no commentary at all, which is a godsend when you really, really can't stand Johnny Weir and Tara Lapinski. Nobody calls anybody anything, I'm able to just watch the skating!

 

[contesstant]

If you're able to stream on Peacock and click the "Venue Feed" (works for both live and replays), there's no commentary at all, which is a godsend when you really, really can't stand Johnny Weir and Tara Lapinski. Nobody calls anybody anything, I'm able to just watch the skating!

Peacock is annoying because despite paying for it, I can’t fast forward through anything. Commercials, coverage I don’t want to watch, none of it. Am I missing something?

 

[Aerlind]

Peacock is annoying because despite paying for it, I can’t fast forward through anything. Commercials, coverage I don’t want to watch, none of it. Am I missing something?

I paid for the "Premium" plan ($10.99/mo) because The Internet said that's the level I needed for on-demand sports, i.e. the Olympics. I can fast forward through coverage I don't want to watch, and I can watch replays/live feeds by sport (rather than the general primetime coverage), but I can't fast forward through the ads. As I have it on in the background while I'm working, I don't really mind, and it's been entertaining to re-enter the world of "what drugs are hot on TV ads right now" (nerd moment because I work in pharma...). I don't watch TV in general so I have no idea.

Do make sure you're not trying to fast forward through a live broadcast! I accidentally tried that yesterday, and oddly enough, you can't fast forward into the future LOL!

For what it's worth, I'm watching on an iPad. I did this for the summer Olympics in 2024 because that's the only way you ever get to see the equestrian events so aside from being slightly more expensive, it's basically the same, which has helped. It IS annoying that if you walk away for more than a few minutes, it "reboots" and you have to go back to find what you were watching, which may or may not pick up where you left off.

 

[Christy]

Peacock is annoying because despite paying for it, I can’t fast forward through anything. Commercials, coverage I don’t want to watch, none of it. Am I missing something?

I can also fast forward through the program but not commercials.

 

[Christy]

I should also say, there aren't commercials on the replays, which is nice. Just prime time (based on what I've watched).

Breezy's finish line engagement certainly stole the show today.

 

[VickiK]

They just MUST have you watch the commercials. But they do make an excellent snack/bathroom break.