American skiing legend Lindsey Vonn recently took to social media to celebrate a new recovery milestone. Six and a half months after her crash at the 2026 Milano-Cortina Winter Olympics, the 41-year-old speed star is back on her bike.
“First time back on a road bike…I cried,” Vonn wrote. “I’m happy and thankful.”
For Vonn, getting back on the bike was an emotional moment as she continues to recover from what many deemed a career-ending injury. She celebrated her first post-crash bike ride alongside her dog, Chance, as she makes significant progress towards a potential return to the snow. In just the past few weeks, Vonn has also shared multiple videos of her in the gym performing various squat and deadlift patterns that suggest her recovery is headed in the right direction.
“I will never stop moving forward… why would I stop?” Vonn wrote in an Instagram montage of her gym progress.
Vonn’s crash 13 seconds into the downhill event at the 2026 Olympics immediately left people questioning whether she would ever be able to ski again. She was airlifted straight from the venue to the a nearby hospital for emergency surgery, where doctors diagnosed her with a complex left tibia fracture, a broken right ankle, and dangerous compartment syndrome. The emergency surgery after the crash, which relieved her compartment syndrome, saved her leg from potential amputation. In total, the skier has undergone six surgeries since her crash, with the latest coming in April 2026 to fix her broken right ankle and to further stabilize her badly broken left leg.
Since her crash, resilience has been the main theme of Vonn’s recovery. She took her very first unassisted steps in public at the 2026 Met Gala back in May, just three months after her crash. She also attended the 2026 ESPYS in New York City as a presenter, where she took the stage and talked about her recovery and plans.
Vonn has also been regularly posting milestones on her social media, keeping her millions of fans updated as she navigates recovery. From surgeries to first steps to first squats (and now, first bike rides), Vonn has been documenting every step of the process, with her fans cheering her on.
“You’re a true inspiration,” one person commented on her most recent update.
While Vonn still has a ways to go, she has not yet shut the door on a potential return to competitive skiing. Downhill at the 2026 Olympics was meant to be a farewell run — a long-standing tradition as the skier flies by while they’re saluted by coaches, teammates, and rivals from their years on tour. While Vonn’s farewell run may not have come at the Olympics, it could come someplace else.
Vonn’s competitive mindset has not dimmed at all. “I still visualize myself making it to the finish line and winning,” she said — letting her coaches, fans, teammates, and competitors know that the competitive fire still burns. And still, Vonn has not announced her retirement from competitive skiing.
“I still have no ACL, so I need to fix that. And I need to get all the metal out of my leg, and then we’ll assess,” Vonn cryptically said in an interview with E! News at the ESPYS.
As Vonn continues her recovery and progress towards a potential return to the snow, getting back on the bike marks another significant step forward. While the road may still be long and bumpy, Vonn’s latest milestone shows her unwillingness to quit.
