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A18 SPORTS
Saturday 2 February 2019
Her knees 'broken beyond repair,' Vonn retiring after worlds

By PAT GRAHAM and AN- Predators defenseman P.K.
DREW DAMPF Subban .
AP Sports Writers She's big on social media,
Lindsey Vonn transcended with 1.6 million Instagram
her sport in a way only a followers.
handful of Olympic ath- A recent post from Vonn
letes could even imag- was cryptic in nature and
ine. She was about more yet all-too-insightful as she
than skiing. She was about quoted the French philoso-
more than medals. She was pher Voltaire: "Each player
about more than winning. must accept the cards life
She was often in the spot- deals him or her: but once
light, appearing in the they are in hand, he or she
pages of mainstream and alone must decide how to
sports magazines, walking play the cards in order to
the red carpets, mingling win the game."
with A-list celebrities and Translation: She simply had
dating high-profile sports no more cards to play. Her
figures. aching knees and beat-up
The record-setting racer body finally applied the
who grew up in Minnesota, brakes to her hard-charg-
then relocated to Colora- ing ways.
do, became a household In hits Dec. 9, 2017, file photo, United States' Lindsey Vonn grimaces in pain after getting to the Vonn's right knee is perma-
name in mountain towns finish area of an women's World Cup super-G ski race in St. Moritz, Switzerland. nently damaged from pre-
and big cities — to people Associated Press vious crashes. She has torn
who knew a lot about rac- ACLs, suffered fractures
ing and those who only ed Press. "Very few people ish resort of Are, and the at the 2010 Vancouver near her left knee, broke
tuned in every four years. can focus and train as hard downhill scheduled for Feb. Games. Four overall World her ankle, sliced her right
But now, conceding her as she does. We're all in 10. Cup titles. And 82 World thumb and had several
body is "broken beyond re- awe of what she's accom- That's it. That's all her knees Cup wins, leaving her four concussions — to name a
pair," Vonn is nearing the plished in her career." have left. behind the all-time mark few. She's limited to about
finish line for the final time. Vonn's original plan was "My body is broken beyond held by Ingemar Stenmark three runs per day, and her
The woman who won more to step away in Decem- repair and it isn't letting of Sweden. body just can't handle the
World Cup races than any ber, after one final charge me have the final season I Her off-the-slopes portfo- workload of other skiers.
other female is calling it down the course in Lake dreamed of," Vonn wrote lio includes: Appearing in "Honestly, retiring isn't what
quits at 34. On Friday, she Louise, Alberta — a course on Instagram . the pages of everything upsets me. Retiring without
said she'll retire after the she won on so often it's now "My body is screaming at from Vogue to the Sports reaching my goal is what
world championships this named in her honor. me to STOP and it's time for Illustrated swimsuit issue, will stay with me forever,"
month. She was forced to move up me to listen. earning sponsorship deals Vonn said. "However, I can
"She's accomplished so her retirement due to per- "It's been an emotional 2 with companies such as look back at 82 World Cup
many things and has over- sistent pain in both knees, weeks making the hard- Red Bull, meeting actors wins, 20 World Cup titles, 3
come so much adversity in which she fully realized af- est decision of my life," she like Dwayne Johnson and Olympic medals, 7 World
her life, with her injuries, and ter failing to finish a race in wrote, "but I have accept- even being an extra on Championship medals and
comebacks, and setbacks Cortina d'Ampezzo , Italy, ed that I cannot continue one of her favorite shows, say that I have accom-
and comebacks," U.S. Ski last month. ski racing." "Law & Order." The spotlight plished something that no
and Snowboard CEO Tiger Now, she's down to two Vonn's impressive resume: only increased when she other woman in HISTORY
Shaw said in a telephone races: The women's super- three Olympic medals, dated golfer Tiger Woods. has ever done, and that
interview with The Associat- G on Tuesday in the Swed- including downhill gold She's now seeing Nashville is something that I will be
proud of FOREVER!"
Her first World Cup start
Kvitova loses to Vekic in was Nov. 18, 2000, in a sla-
lom race in Park City, Utah,
and she didn't qualify for
St Petersburg quarters the second run. She was
Lindsey Kildow then, be-
fore changing her name
to Vonn after marrying her
ST. PETERSBURG, Russia Kvitova, the defending St. a single walkover over the now ex-husband and ex-
(AP) — Australian Open Petersburg champion who injured Maria Sharapova. coach, Thomas.
finalist Petra Kvitova strug- lost to Naomi Osaka in the Fourth-seeded Aryna Sa- Her first World Cup win
gled with her serve and Australian Open final, was balenka reached the came four years later, in a
was eliminated from the playing in her 14th match semifinals by beating Rus- downhill event at Lake Lou-
St. Petersburg Ladies Tro- in 24 days. It was Vekic's sian qualifier Ekaterina Al- ise.
Donna Vekic of Croatia re- phy after losing to eighth- fifth match in that time. exandrova 6-3, 6-4. She Retiring in Sweden brings
turns the ball to Petra Kvi- seeded Donna Vekic 6-4, Vekic will next face veter- will next play Kiki Bertens, Vonn full circle. She won
tova of Czech Republic dur- 6-1 in the quarterfinals on an Vera Zvonareva in the who beat Anastasia Pav- her first two major champi-
ing the St. Petersburg Ladies Friday. semifinals after she beat lyuchenkova 6-2, 3-6, 6-0. onship medals — two silvers
Trophy-2019 tennis tourna- The second-ranked Kvito- fellow Russian Daria Kasat- That was a rematch after — at the 2007 worlds in Are.
ment quarter final match in va landed only 48 percent kina 6-3, 7-6 (3). Pavlyuchenkova knocked As for how she will be re-
St.Petersburg, Russia, Friday, membered , that's simple
Feb. 1, 2019. of her first serves, double- The 12th-ranked Kasatkina Bertens out of the Austra-
Associated Press faulted six times, and was has yet to win a match this lian Open second round.q for U.S. coach Paul Kristofic:
broken five times. year after four losses and Her comebacks.q