Lindsey Vonn wins gold in women's downhill

Bruised shin can't keep "America's Sweetheart" from the medal ceremony

My first question is, "Was Lindsey Vonn playing possum?"

My second question is, "Is Lindsey Vonn that much better than everyone else in the world at women's downhill?"

The answers to these questions, in my mind, are "likely" and "resoundingly, yes." That is not mean to denigrate the talent of American teammate Julia Mancuso or Austria's Elisabeth Goergl, who took silver and bronze in the event. Lindsey Vonn won the women's downhill by more than half a second, according to AP reports. When it comes to skiing talent, Vonn is of the mind to cash in now on the gifts at her disposal.

An injured right shin had kept Vonn out of practice

That injury dates back to a pre-Olympic practice on February 2. Despite the setback, Vonn was considered the overwhelming favorite in women's downhill in Vancouver. She'd won five of her past six women's downhill events, so I suppose the victory should come as no surprise.

But the pressure must have been tremendous. As coach and husband Thomas Vonn exclaimed, "She had the weight of the world on her… People were basically hanging the medal around her neck before the start."

Playing possum? Blame the media

Olympic competition is extremely demanding physically, and it's difficult to gauge how the body will respond in that moment of pressure, performance and adrenaline fire. Lindsey Vonn was definitely concerned over the condition of her right shin, but she wanted to compete. The intense media coverage magnified every move she made before her event, and it could have lulled the competition into a false sense of security, I'd wager. ... click here to read the rest of the article titled "Lindsey Vonn wins gold in women's downhill"