NEW YORK: Lindsey Vonn, widely regarded as the greatest female ski racer of all-time, will retire from competition following the 2018-19 season even if she fails to break the record for World Cup wins, the American said on Thursday.

The 33-year-old holds the women’s record of 82 World Cup wins and trails only Swedish great Ingemar Stenmark’s long-standing mark of 86.

“This is going to be my last season. Definitely retiring after this year,” Vonn said in New York while moderating a panel on small businesses.

“If I could break the record that would be amazing, if I can’t it has been a great ride and I am still the most successful female and I still think that’s something to be really proud of.

“So we’ll just see what happens this year.”

The Minnesota-born skier had said at the 2018 Pyeongchang Olympics that she would not quit until beating Stenmark’s record.

“I am hoping that is just one season. I am not going to quit until I get that record, that is for sure, no matter how much pain I am in,” Vonn said in February.

Vonn, who began skiing at the age of three and started racing at seven, picked up her first Olympic medal when she won gold at the 2010 Vancouver Games. Her final season will kick off in Lake Louise in late November.

Published in Dawn, October 13th, 2018