CORTINA D'AMPEZZO, Italy — Lindsey Vonn’s hopes for reclaiming a gold medal in the women’s downhill competition at the Winter Olympics were thwarted on Sunday when she crashed early in her race.

Vonn, 41, who was competing a week after rupturing her ACL, was off-balance after her first jump and clipped a gate 13.4 seconds into her run on the Olympia della Tofane course. She was airlifted off the side of the mountain by a helicopter several minutes later, NBC News reported.

Vonn’s father says he hopes she quits competing

Update 2:38 p.m. ET Feb. 9: Lindsey Vonn’s father, Alan Kildow, told The Associated Press that he hopes she stops racing after her latest injury.

“She’s 41 years old and this is the end of her career. There will be no more ski races for Lindsey Vonn, as long as I have anything to say about it,” Kildow told the AP on a phone interview.

He, along with Vonn’s siblings, has been with the Olympian as she recovers from her crash and subsequent surgery.

Kildow did not give any update on her injuries and what was done to repair her broken bones. He did, however, talk about her emotional response to the accident.

“She’s a very strong individual,” Kildow said. “She knows physical pain and she understands the circumstances that she finds herself in. And she’s able to handle it. Better than I expected. She’s a very, very strong person. And so I think she’s handling it real well.”

Kildow is a former ski racer and taught his daughter the sport.

He stressed that the crash this weekend had nothing to do with the torn ACL she suffered more than a week ago.

“What happened to her had nothing to do with the ACL issue on her left leg. Nothing,” Kildow explained to the AP. “She had demonstrated that she was able to function at a very high level with the two downhill training runs. … And she had been cleared by high level physicians to ski.”

He said that it was how she pushed the limits of her racing line.

“There are times sometimes in any race, but especially in downhill, where you have to take a little speed off,” he told the AP. “You can give yourself a little bit more leeway on the line so you don’t put yourself in a questionable position.”

He added that his daughter will not be returning to any Milan Olympic event, even as a spectator.

“No, she’s not that in kind of situation,” Kildow said. “She will be going home at an appropriate point in time.”

-- Natalie Dreier, Cox Media Group National Content Desk

Vonn undergoes surgery on left leg

Update 1:11 p.m. ET Feb. 8: Lindsey Vonn underwent surgery to stabilize a fracture in her left leg, officials at an Italian hospital told The Associated Press.

She was being “treated by a multidisciplinary team” and “underwent an orthopedic operation to stabilize a fracture reported in her left leg,” the Ca’ Foncello hospital said in a statement, according to the news organization.

Original report: The three-time Olympic medalist in skiing remained prone in the snow after she crashed, USA Today reported. Spectators looked on in shocked silence, and Vonn could be heard screaming in pain after she fell.

Johan Eliasch, president of the International Ski and Snowboard Federation, said that Vonn’s crash was “tragic,” The Associated Press reported. He added “that’s ski racing.”

Vonn was the 13th woman to ski down the 1.6-mile-long course, with 23 competitors behind her.

Vonn’s teammate, Breezy Johnson, would win the event, becoming the second American woman to take Olympics gold in the competition, NBC News reported. Vonn won the gold medal in the 2010 Games in Vancouver.

It was the second time in two weeks that Vonn has been airlifted off a mountain. On Jan. 30, she fully ruptured her left ACL and had meniscus damage and bone bruising in the final World Cup event before the Olympics.

“That definitely was the last thing we wanted to see,” Vonn’s sister, Karin Kildow, said on the NBC broadcast after Vonn was airlifted out, according to The Athletic. “It happened quick. When that happens, you’re just immediately hoping she’s OK. It was scary because when you start seeing the stretchers being put out, it’s not a good sign.

“She put it all out there, so it’s really hard to see.”

Vonn has won 84 World Cup races — including two downhill competitions this season — along with eight world championship and three Olympic medals, The Athletic reported. Only Mikaela Shiffrin (108) and Sweden’s Ingemar Stenmark (86) have won more World Cup races.

Vonn also took a bronze during the Vancouver Olympics in the Super-G event and grabbed bronze in the downhill during the 2018 Games in PyeongChang, South Korea.

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