Lindsey Vonn reveals surgery saved leg from amputation after crash

American skier Lindsey Vonn has revealed she narrowly avoided having her left leg amputated following a high-speed crash in the women’s downhill at the Milan Cortina Olympics.

The 41-year-old disclosed on Monday that her injuries extended significantly beyond the complex tibia fracture initially diagnosed.

Vonn crashed just 13 seconds into her run on 8 February after clipping a gate and suffering a heavy impact.

Compartment syndrome trauma

The former Olympic champion developed compartment syndrome, a critical condition where excessive pressure builds within muscles due to bleeding or swelling.

If untreated, the restriction of blood flow can lead to permanent tissue damage and loss of the limb.

“When you have so much trauma to one area of your body so that there’s too much blood and it gets stuck and it basically crushes everything,” Vonn stated.

She credited Dr Tom Hackett, an orthopedic surgeon for Team USA, with performing an emergency fasciotomy to salvage the limb.

“He filleted it open [and] let it breathe, and he saved me,” she added.

‘He saved my leg’

Hackett was only present in Cortina because the US skier was competing despite recently tearing the ACL in her left knee.

“If I hadn’t had done that, Tom wouldn’t have been there [and he] wouldn’t have been able to save my leg,” Vonn explained.

In addition to the leg trauma, the American also suffered a broken right ankle during the incident.

Vonn confirmed she has now been discharged from hospital to begin her recovery.