Jannik Sinner has sent a message to Lindsey Vonn after the 41-year-old American alpine ski racer suffered a serious leg injury at the Winter Olympics

TENNIS-AUS-OPEN
Jannik Sinner has sent a message to Lindsey Vonn (Image: Getty)

Tennis star Jannik Sinner has sent a message of support to Lindsey Vonn after she suffered a fractured leg in a crash at the Winter Olympics.

The 41-year-old was commpeting in the women’s downhill skiing final on Sunday in Cortina, Italy, when she crashed after clipping a gate while mid-air. The incident occured just 13 seconds into her run and also resulted in Vonn, who was airlifted to hospital, sustaining a tibia fracture and undergoing emergency surgery.

Shortly after it was confirmed that Vonn had a second operation, Sinner took to Instagram to send a message to the skiing sensation. Posting a photo of him skiing with Vonn, the tennis men’s world No.2 said in a caption: “Thinking of you @lindseyvonn [downcast face with sweat and folded hands emoji].”

In a recent interview with Vogue, Sinner spoke about his friendship with Vonn. “Yes, I’m good friends with Lindsey,” the Italian said. “I will say; The greatest athletes have a lot of courage.”

Vonn was spotted watching Sinner at the US Open in September. She was in attendance as Sinner went up against Carlos Alcaraz in the final at Flushing Meadows.

Alpine Skiing - Milano Cortina Winter Olympics

Lindsey Vonn crashed at the Winter Olympics. (Image: Getty Images)

While there has been no indication that Vonn is going to retire from the sport, she did provide a detailed update on Instagram on Monday night, admitting she has ‘no regrets’. Vonn competed at the Winter Olympics despite tearing her Anterior Cruciate Ligament (ACL) just nine days before competing at the Games.

Vonn said on Instagram: “Yesterday my Olympic dream did not finish the way I dreamt it would. It wasn’t a story book ending or a fairy tail, it was just life. I dared to dream and had worked so hard to achieve it. Because in Downhill ski racing the difference between a strategic line and a catastrophic injury can be as small as five inches.

“I was simply five inches too tight on my line when my right arm hooked inside of the gate, twisting me and resulted in my crash. My ACL and past injuries had nothing to do with my crash whatsoever. Unfortunately, I sustained a complex tibia fracture that is currently stable but will require multiple surgeries to fix properly.

“While yesterday did not end the way I had hoped, and despite the intense physical pain it caused, I have no regrets. Standing in the starting gate yesterday was an incredible feeling that I will never forget. Knowing I stood there having a chance to win was a victory in and of itself. I also knew that racing was a risk. It always was and always will be an incredibly dangerous sport.

“And similar to ski racing, we take risks in life. We dream. We love. We jump. And sometimes we fall. Sometimes our hearts are broken. Sometimes we don’t achieve the dreams we know we could have. But that is the also the beauty of life; we can try.
“I tried. I dreamt. I jumped. I hope if you take away anything from my journey it’s that you all have the courage to dare greatly. Life is too short not to take chances on yourself. Because the only failure in life is not trying.

“I believe in you, just as you believed in me.”