Lindsey Vonn crashes while training for return to racing with Olympics less than 3 months off

DENVER – Reigning Olympic downhill champion Lindsey Vonn has crashed while training ahead of her return to racing following major knee surgery.

U.S. Ski Team spokesman Tom Kelly said Tuesday that Vonn is being evaluated at a hospital after being taken off the slope at Copper Mountain, Colo., on a sled, which is standard procedure.

Kelly said he is not sure whether Vonn hurt her surgically repaired right knee.

“We have no reason to believe it’s anything significant right now,” Kelly said.

The four-time overall World Cup champion tore her ACL and MCL in a crash at the world championships in February. She has been aiming to return to World Cup competition next week in Beaver Creek, Colorado.

The Sochi Games are in February.

With her knee feeling so good — she was months ahead of schedule — Vonn thought about pushing up her return to competitive ski racing to the season-opening race in Soelden, Austria, late last month. But she changed her mind and skipped it to train even more.

Vonn recently said her super-G is “some of the best super-G I’ve ever skied, but my downhill still needs a little more time.” She’s been training at the team’s speed centre in Copper Mountain, even posting on her Twitter account Monday: “Catching some air today in Downhill training.”

The 29-year-old Vonn showed up on the sideline Sunday night for the Chiefs-Broncos game with boyfriend Tiger Woods.