Lindsey Vonn spent half a decade away from skiing before coming out of retirement in December last year. The decision paid off, as she recently secured a podium finish at the World Cup finals in Idaho, earning praise from close friend Lewis Hamilton.
Vonn came quite close to winning the super-G event in Sun Valley but had to settle for second—a worthy achievement nonetheless, for the 40-year-old veteran alpine skier who first left the sport in February 2019.
AN INCREDIBLE RUN FOR LINDSEY VONN.
In what is likely her final race on US snow, she finishes ON THE PODIUM in second place at the Stifel Sun Valley World Cup Finals women’s super-G! pic.twitter.com/EF5YIVL4cU
— NBC Olympics & Paralympics (@NBCOlympics) March 23, 2025
Hamilton was delighted. He quickly took to his Instagram account to congratulate Vonn on her result.
“Epic! Knew you could do it, and [I] am so proud of you,” Hamilton wrote in his story, reposting a clip of Vonn’s celebrations after the event. A heartwarming moment between two friends from two very different sporting worlds.
Lewis Hamilton congratulates his friend and three-time Olympic medalist alpine skirt Lindsey Vonn for her first podium since her comeback pic.twitter.com/TkV1LU1kOX
— Motorsport Fan (@F1IndyWEC) March 24, 2025
But how far back do the two actually go?
Hamilton and Vonn have been friends for a long time, with the Minnesota-born skier even attending races in the past to support the Ferrari driver. She was present at the 2016 United States GP, where Hamilton won a tense race by just five seconds ahead of his then-teammate and title rival, Nico Rosberg.
She even posted a congratulatory message for Hamilton’s victory in Austin that day—which was also his 50th Grand Prix win. “Congrats on your 50th win… So proud to call you a friend! Can’t wait to watch the last few races …fingers crossed!”
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Sadly for Vonn, her friend didn’t win the title in 2016. However, he went on to dominate from 2017 to 2020, winning four more championships and bringing his total to seven. Now, at 40 years old, he has joined Ferrari—the most decorated team in the sport’s history—in pursuit of another title.
Hamilton, with a dominant sprint victory in China last weekend, is proving that age is just a number—something Vonn, 41, can truly relate to.
After her recent second-place finish, Vonn stated that she has silenced some of her doubters by achieving such a result in her 40s, as she turns 41 later this year in October. Nevertheless, she continues to push herself, lamenting that she could have skied better to even win the super-G event.
“Age is just a number. If you feel good, and you’re mentally still driven and work hard, you can achieve anything you set your mind to,” she said, per the BBC.
Now that she is back on the skiing circuit, Vonn will be eager to secure a spot on the USA team for the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan, Italy. Having proven she can still compete at the highest level with a podium finish, the Minnesota-born skier will have her sights set on winning a fourth Olympic medal next February.
