Cristiano Ronaldo sent a powerful message of support to Lindsey Vonn as the American skiing star opened up on the severity of her horror crash after finally being discharged from hospital.
The 41-year-old suffered a complex tibia fracture, fractured her fibia head, broke her ankle, and fell victim to compartment syndrome after clipping the first gate upon her return to Winter Olympic competition at Milano-Cortina just over two weeks ago.
Vonn’s distressing crash forced her to undergo six-hour surgery after she was airlifted off the course, with the downhill star only last week returning to the United States.
Sharing a detailed update with her fans on social media, Vonn was visibly upset as she recounted how close she came to amputation, at times holding back tears.
But Ronaldo was among those to offer words of support underneath the post, with the Al-Nassr superstar uniquely poised to understand Vonn’s still-competitive mindset.
‘Champions are defined by the moments they win, and the moments they refuse to give up,’ Ronaldo wrote.
Lindsay Vonn shared a detailed update of the painful surgeries she was forced to ensure
Cristiano Ronaldo was among the sporting superstars to share words of support on Instagram
‘The mountains you conquered were never bigger than the strength you carry. Keep fighting. Legends always rise.’
Vonn took the time to reply to his thoughtful message, writing: ‘Coming from you, this means so much (prayer hands emoji).’
His post was followed up by more kind words from other sporting superstars, with Zlatan Ibrahimovic writing: ‘Giving up is not an option (bicep emoji)’.
Two-time Grand Slam champion Garbine Muguruza, former Wimbledon champion Marion Bartoli, and seven-time Olympic gold medallist Allyson Felix were among those to also send consoling words of support under Vonn’s video message.
In the video, Vonn confirmed that she is in a wheelchair, and will be for some time, with her complex leg breaks intensified by a side effect of the impact of the crash.
‘The reason it was so complex was because I had compartment syndrome,’ Vonn explained. ‘Compartment syndrome is when you have so much trauma to one area that there is too much blood and it gets stuck. It basically crushes everything – muscles, nerves, tendons, it dies.
‘Dr Tom Hackett saved my leg from being amputated. He did what is called a fasciotomy, he cut open both sides of my leg and let it breathe and he saved me.
‘It will take around a year for all of the bones to heal and then I will decide if I want to take out all the metal or not, and then go back into surgery and finally fix my ACL. Life is life, we have to take the punches as they come.’
Vonn underwent five surgeries to repair multiple leg breaks and a broken ankle, as well as a deadly loss of blood
The 41-year-old revealed how close she came to amputation – with her leg now supported by dozens of metal pins
Vonn crashed just 13 seconds into her first competitve run at this year’s Winter Olympics
One week before Winter Games, Vonn had torn her ACL but remained determined to continue to compete.
Now, Vonn will have to wait to fully repair her ACL for over a year, as any surgery would come after a potential first surgery to remove the metal pins in approximately 12 months time.
Vonn joked last week that she was ‘bionic for real now’ after sharing an x-ray of her leg, which is now held together by dozens of metal pins.
In total, Vonn had five surgeries in Italy, including one to combat low haemoglobin after extensive blood loss in the first four surgeries.
On Tuesday, she shared another social media post talking about the less-visible mental pain she has suffered since the crash.
‘Today was a hard day… my physical battle began the second I got hurt but the mental battle started today,’ Vonn wrote on X. ‘It hit me like a ton of bricks.
‘It’s a battle I’m used to because I’ve done it so many times. I have always learned from every injury. Each one has made me a better and stronger person in different ways… but the battle of the mind can be dark and hard and unrelenting.
‘Someone I care about said I am a “master at the psychological game of life…”
‘I don’t know if that’s true…. I do know hard days are coming but I will find a way back to the top of the mountain of life.’