CORTINA D'AMPEZZO, Italy, Feb. 8 (Xinhua) -- American alpine skier Breezy Johnson won the women's downhill in a tightly contested race overshadowed by a serious crash involving her star teammate Lindsey Vonn at the Milan-Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics here on Sunday.
Starting sixth, Johnson clocked one minute 36.10 seconds and held on through all 35 competitors. Germany's Emma Aicher finished second with 0.04 seconds behind, while home favorite Sofia Goggia clocked 1:36.69 to claim bronze.
30-year-old Johnson said she had expected an exceptionally close contest, and the results bore that out. She said the narrow margin was "a testament to the whole team."
"People behind the scenes are working to make sure that our suits are as fast as possible, to make sure that our skis are as fast as possible," Johnson noted. "And when it comes down to four hundredths, if one person doesn't do their job a hundred percent, then suddenly you no longer have a gold medal."
Competing in her second Winter Olympics, Johnson became the second American woman to win Olympic gold in downhill following Vonn.
"Downhill is, in my opinion, the premier event of alpine skiing, and to win a gold medal in it as an American is very surreal," she said.
Johnson added that Vonn's achievements place her "in a different echelon," but having her name alongside Vonn's was "really something special."
The celebration was tempered by concern for Vonn, the 41-year-old Vancouver 2010 Olympic champion, who raced despite a torn anterior cruciate ligament. About 13 seconds into her run, Vonn suffered a severe crash. Course medical staff attended to her before she was airlifted from the slope by helicopter.
Slow-motion television replays suggested Vonn may have struck her head in the fall. The U.S. ski and snowboard team later released a short update on social media, saying Vonn "sustained an injury, but is in stable condition and in good hands with a team of American and Italian physicians."
Johnson said she had limited information after the race but was told Vonn was conscious. "I don't have anything except that her coach said that she was cheering for me in the helicopter," she said. "I hope that it's not too bad. My heart aches for her. It's such a brutal sport sometimes."
