American great Lindsey Vonn dominated the opening women's downhill of the season on Friday to become the oldest winner of an Alpine skiing World Cup race in a sensational boost for her 2026 Olympic comeback bid.
The 2010 Olympic downhill champion took the 83rd World Cup win of her career - and first since a downhill in Are, Sweden, in March 2018 - by 0.98 of a second in the Swiss resort of St Moritz.
The 41-year-old was fastest by an astonishing 1.16 seconds ahead of Mirjam Puchner of Austria. Even wilder was that Vonn trailed by 0.61 after the first two time checks.
Vonn then was faster than anyone through the next speed checks, touching 119 kph (74 mph), and posted the fastest time splits for the bottom half of the sunbathed Corviglia course.
She skied through the finish area and bumped against the inflated safety barrier, lay down in the snow and raised her arms on seeing her time.
Vonn got up, punched the air with her right fist and shrieked with joy before putting her hands to her left cheek in a sleeping gesture.
She was the No. 16 starter with all the pre-race favorites having completed their runs.
Vonn now races with a titanium knee on her comeback, which started last season after five years of retirement.
The Olympic champion is targeting another gold medal at the Milan Cortina Winter Games in February.
