By Tom Bachmann
Park City, Utah – Lindsey Vonn has taken a major step towards her comeback! The ski superstar will head the slopes as one of the US federation's A-team for the upcoming season.
The 41-year-old was one of 17 athletes named to the team on Wednesday, per an Instagram announcement.
The season will kick off in late October in Sölden.
A quick comeback for Vonn is virtually impossible, as she's still dealing with the aftermath of her crash on the Olympic downhill in February of this year.
At the end of April, Vonn herself announced that nothing would happen before the 2027-28 season.
Another operation is scheduled for November, during which Vonn will have metal removed from her leg and her cruciate ligament replaced.
"Once my cruciate ligament is repaired, it will take another six months," Vonn said at the time.
This also rules out a World Championship start in Switzerland next year.
In the World Cup, Vonn would have a personal start right. The International Ski Federation recently announced that the 84‑time World Cup champion would receive a wildcard, should she decide to make a comeback.
Vonn suffered a severe fall at the Winter Olympics in Cortina d'Ampezzo, resulting in a complex fracture of her left shinbone.
As she later recounted, only an emergency operation prevented her leg from having to be amputated. Vonn has had to undergo multiple surgeries in the time since.