Vonn misses St Moritz super-G with back injury
United States' Lindsey Vonn grimaces in pain after getting to the finish area after the super-G race at the FIS alpine skiing World Cup in St Moritz, Switzerland, on December 9, 2017.
After injuring her back in a World Cup race, Lindsey Vonn withdrew from another scheduled super-G on Sunday before the race was canceled due to fog.
"Unfortunately I will not be able to race today," Vonn wrote on her Twitter account 45 minutes before the original scheduled start.
"I am extremely disappointed but my biggest goal this season is the Olympics," said the American star, who won the downhill title at the 2010 Vancouver Games but missed the 2014 Sochi Games due to injury.
Vonn jarred her back on Saturday early in a World Cup super-G on the same St Moritz course, and completed the race in obvious pain in 24th place.
Late on Saturday on Twitter, she described the injury as "an acute facet (spinal joint) dysfunction," though she had not had an MRI.
Vonn added on Sunday: "I need to take care of myself now so I can be ready for next week, and more importantly, for February."
The Pyeongchang Olympics in South Korea are staged during February 9-25.
Fog and strong winds high on the mountain had already forced race organizers on Sunday to shorten the scheduled race and use a lower start gate.
The 10:30am local time start was pushed back to 11:30am before organizers gave in to the thick fog shrouding the mountain.
The super-G was intended to be a stand-alone race and also double up as the first leg of a combined event with an afternoon slalom run. The combined was also canceled.
Next up for the women on the World Cup circuit will be a downhill and super-G next weekend in the French resort of Val d'Isere, with downhill training set for Thursday and Friday.
On Tuesday, Switzerland's Jasmine Flury, who had never previously finished on the podium in a World Cup race, was a surprise winner of the super-G, starting from 14th, in one minute 2.59 seconds.
She finished 0.10 seconds ahead of compatriot Michelle Gisin while Liechtenstein's Tina Weirather was third.
Flury admitted she had enjoyed the best of the very changeable conditions.
"I don't know what to say, unbelievable," she said. "Everything went well — no wind, good vision, sun," she said.
Winner Jasmine Flury of Switzerland cries after the podium ceremony of the women's super-G race during the FIS alpine skiing World Cup in St Moritz, Switzerland, on December 9, 2017.
