Lindsey Vonn had a telling response when asked if she would accept an invite from US President Donald Trump to visit the White House.
Vonn, 41, crashed out of the women's downhill final at the 2026 Winter Olympics, suffering a complex tibia fracture in her left leg.
The US skiing legend was looking to become the oldest athlete, man or woman, to win an Olympic medal in alpine skiing.
She had suffered a '100 per cent' ruptured anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) in a crash at a World Cup event nine days before the Olympics, but decided to compete.
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Her crash in Cortina was not caused by the ACL injury, as her right ski pole clipped a timing gate during a jump and sent her off balance.
Vonn has so far undergone four successful surgeries on her left leg fracture after being admitted to Ca' Foncello Hospital in Treviso, and has said she will need two further surgeries once she returns home to the US.
Her team-mate, Breezy Johnson, won women's downhill gold, having watched Vonn's crash as it happened following her own run.
Johnson and her Olympic team-mates will likely be invited to the White House following the Games as is tradition - though it is unclear as to how many athletes would accept the invite if offered.
Vonn was asked by reporters in 2025 about whether she would visit the White House if invited by Trump.
"I just want to say that every Olympic athlete from Team USA is normally invited," she replied (via The List). "It has nothing to do with if you win a medal or not.
"I'm not going to answer that question because, I'm just not going to answer it. I want to keep my passport."
The question was likely posed to the 2010 Olympic champion because of her previous comments on the topic.
Ahead of the 2018 Olympics in Pyeongchang, South Korea - which was Vonn's final Games before her first retirement from skiing - she told CNN that she would 'absolutely not' attend the White House during what was Trump's first presidency.
"Absolutely not," she said. "No.
"But I have to win to be invited. No, actually, I think every US team member is invited, so no, I won't go."
"I hope to represent the people of the United States, not the President.
"I take the Olympics very seriously, and what they mean and what they represent. What walking under our flag means at opening ceremonies.
"I want to represent everybody well. I don't think that there are a lot of people currently in our government that do that."
Topics: Olympics, United States, Donald Trump
Ryan Smart