Lindsey Vonn crashed in her final downhill before the Milan Cortina Winter Olympics and was left limping and keeping weight off her left knee before being airlifted to hospital – throwing into doubt the 41-year-old’s spectacular skiing comeback.

Vonn – who was expected to be one of the stars of the Olympics but now faces uncertainty over her status – lost control on Friday when landing a jump in a World Cup race held in difficult conditions with low visibility and ended up tangled in the safety nets on the upper portion of the course.

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The race at Crans-Montana in Switzerland, was later cancelled after three of the first six racers crashed.

Vonn eventually got up after receiving medical attention and walked away gingerly, taking weight off her left knee and using her poles to steady herself. She then clicked her skis back on but stopped to check her left knee.

The American eventually made it to the finish area and limped into a tent for medical attention. She was then airlifted away by helicopter – dangling from a rope across the Swiss Alps.

Before she entered the tent, Vonn had an anxious expression on her face and her eyes were closed during a long embrace with teammate Jacqueline Wiles, who was leading the race when it was cancelled.

Vonn has been the circuit’s leading downhiller this season with two victories and three other podium finishes, having returned last season after a partial right knee titanium replacement.

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Including super-G, Vonn had completed eight World Cup races this season and finished on the podium in seven of them. Her worst finish was fourth.

The crash occurred exactly a week before the Milan Cortina opening ceremony.

Vonn’s first Olympic race is the women’s downhill on February 8. She was also planning on competing in the super-G and the new team combined event at the Games.

Women’s skiing at the Olympics will be held in Cortina d’Ampezzo, where Vonn holds the record of 12 World Cup wins.

Vonn was also planning on racing a super-G in Crans-Montana on Saturday in what would have been her final race before the Games.

Vonn had registered the fastest time at the first checkpoint and then landed a jump off balance, lifting her left arm and pole high into the air in an attempt to regain her balance. Then, as she tried to brake, Vonn got spun around and ended up in the nets.

Vonn was the sixth racer to start, and two other skiers had also crashed before her: Nina Ortlieb of Austria and Marte Monsen of Norway.

Ortlieb crashed on top in the same area as Vonn, and Monsen hit the nets just before the finish area and had to be taken away in a sled. The race was delayed after both of those crashes. But then two racers – Wiles and Corrine Suter, the Olympic champion, completed their runs.

Romane Miradoli of France, who did complete her run, said visibility was an issue, with snow falling.

“You can’t see,” Miradoli said, “and it’s bumpy everywhere.”

Asked if it was dangerous, Miradoli added, “We just couldn’t see well.”

Vonn has had numerous crashes in her career. One of her worst was at the 2013 world championships in Schladming, Austria, during a super-G that was also held in difficult conditions. Vonn then had to be airlifted off the course and tore apart her right knee. She returned the following season, got hurt again and missed the 2014 Sochi Olympics.