For an athlete defined by speed, Lindsey Vonn’s world came to a sudden, violent stop on a Swiss mountainside. It left the sports world to speculate on her future. Now, she’s providing the answers herself.

“Yesterday, my Olympic dream did not finish the way I dreamt it would. It wasn’t a storybook ending or a fairy tale; it was just life,” Vonn wrote on Instagram. “I dared to dream and had worked so hard to achieve it. Because in downhill ski racing, the difference between a strategic line and a catastrophic injury can be as small as 5 inches.”

“I was simply 5 inches too tight on my line when my right arm hooked inside of the gate, twisting me and resulting in my crash. My ACL and past injuries had nothing to do with my crash whatsoever. Unfortunately, I sustained a complex tibia fracture that is currently stable but will require multiple surgeries to fix properly. While yesterday did not end the way I had hoped, and despite the intense physical pain it caused, I have no regrets.”

During her presence at the women’s downhill competition at the Winter Olympics, Vonn caught the fourth gate with her right arm while passing through it. This caused her to lose her balance. Although she tried to steady herself, her legs spread apart, and her weight shifted too far back on her skis. That loss of control caused her to fall to the right before flipping forward and crashing headfirst into the snow.

She was taken off the mountain by helicopter and first brought to a clinic in Cortina. From there, she was moved to a hospital in Treviso, about two hours away. Doctors later performed surgery at Ca’Foncello Hospital to stabilize a broken bone in her left leg.

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Vonn explained that this injury has nothing to do with the ACL tear she had in the past. In a long and emotional post on Instagram, she said she does not regret choosing to compete. She recently came back to racing after tearing her ACL during a downhill race on Jan. 30, which makes this new injury especially tough. Now, her main focus is healing and going through rehab again.

However, one major concern surrounding her current physical status is the fact that the doctors describe this kind of injury as very serious. It usually means the bone is broken in several places, and the nearby muscles and tissue are also injured. According to the Yale School of Medicine, treating this type of injury often requires surgery by doctors who specialize in severe bone injuries.

Vonn, however, remains emotionally strong in this tough time. She mentioned that the doctors involved must work together to decide the best timing for each surgery and how to safely move forward with treatment. She also explained that injuries like this usually require more than one surgery. These procedures are often done in stages, and sometimes doctors are able to perform multiple surgeries during the same operation. While she might not carry regrets despite the concerning accident, her family members are devastated for sure.

Lindsey Vonn’s father highlights the psychological impact of the injury

The visuals of Lindsey Vonn’s injury were way beyond what the sporting world generally sees. While it was enough to disturb any athletic heart, the impact was unimaginable for the ski racer’s father. Amid the ongoing discussions surrounding Vonn’s current status, her father, Alan Kildow, shut down the gates on the expectations of seeing her on snow once again, at least for a while. According to him, the accident could be the end of her career.

“She’s 41 years old, and this is the end of her career,” Alan Kildow told The Associated Press. “There will be no more ski races for Lindsey Vonn, as long as I have anything to say about it.”

Further highlighting Vonn’s current emotional status, Kildow added, “She’s a very strong individual. She knows physical pain, and she understands the circumstances that she finds herself in. And she’s able to handle it. Better than I expected. She’s a very, very strong person. And so I think she’s handling it really well.”

Holding a record 12 World Cup wins in Cortina, Vonn returned to competitive skiing last season after keeping a distance for nearly six years. Her comeback came after she had partial titanium replacement surgery on her right knee. Despite the long break, her performance turned out to be exceptional. She won two downhill races and finished on the podium in seven of the eight World Cup races she completed this season. While her father has confirmed that there will be no extensions in her career, it remains to be seen what she has to say about it.