Just months after an Olympic crash left her with a shattered leg, Lindsey Vonn walked the red carpet — unassisted — at the 2026 Met Gala in New York.
The Olympic gold medalist had one goal for the night: walk the red carpet on her own two feet. In a moment defined by her trademark resilience, Vonn showed up to fashion’s biggest night dressed to impress in a custom-made Thom Browne gown — as well as a custom black and gold walking cane, rounding out Vonn’s captivating outfit. She ditched the cane for the famous walk down the Met’s carpet
This year’s dress code was “Fashion is Art,” and Vonn’s attire did not disappoint. The legendary ski racer wore a beaded white mermaid gown containing over 500,000 glass-cut beads made by fashion designer Thom Browne. The dress, which took over 4,000 hours to complete, also featured a white tulle underskirt. This is Vonn’s second appearance at the Met Gala after she attended in 2013 with then-boyfriend Tiger Woods.
“I feel amazing. [Browne] always makes me feel good,” Vonn told PEOPLE Magazine.
Before the event, Vonn had made it her goal to walk the red carpet without any assistance. She arrived at the pre-Met Gala party with the help of her crutches, saving her energy for the red carpet moment she had set eyes on.
“So from the start to the top of the stairs, if I can make it with no crutches, that’s a huge win,” Vonn said before the event.
When it was time to walk the Met’s signature carpet, Vonn did so unassisted. She was able to walk the 20 yards unaided — the first time in public since the crash — after two Met Gala assistants helped Vonn up the iconic steps leading to the red carpet.
After five surgeries, the Met Gala appearance was a statement in itself. Vonn has fought her way back from many race injuries and her comeback to ski racing at 40 after six years of retirement was an empowering message to athletes everywhere. Now she has even left the door open on a potential return to skiing.
“I never got a final run,” she admitted in a podcast interview with NBC’s TODAY show host Craig Melvin last month.
While a return to competitive skiing may be in Vonn’s future, she is currently simply committed to recovering. Vonn is still undergoing hours of rehab and will have another surgery in the fall to remove the metal in her leg. She is also yet to have surgery on a lingering ACL tear that occurred before the Olympics, meaning any comeback would be more than 18 months away.
