Lindsey Vonn wins World Cup downhill at age 41 to start her Olympic season

The queen of downhill skiing is well and truly back.

Lindsey Vonn raced to a stunning fast win in a World Cup downhill on Friday in St. Moritz, Switzerland, to earn her first victory in nearly eight years — and the first in her comeback with titanium implants in her right knee after a five-year retirement.

The 41-year-old United States ski great seized the lead by an astonishing 1.16 seconds ahead of Mirjam Puchner of Austria. Even wilder was that Vonn trailed by 0.61 after the first two time checks.

Vonn's lead was later cut to 0.98 — still a massive margin in downhill — when unheralded Magdalena Egger took second place from teammate Puchner.

"It was an amazing day, I couldn't be happier, pretty emotional," Vonn told Swiss broadcaster RTS. "I felt good this summer but I wasn't sure how fast I was. I guess I know now how fast I am."

It was a perfect start to her Olympic season to get a first victory since a downhill in March 2018 at Are, Sweden.

Vonn's superb debut working with new coach Aksel Lund Svindal, a men's downhill great who won the 2018 Pyeongchang Olympics title, suggests their stellar partnership is paying off.

Her run Friday looked routine when she dropped tenths of seconds to Puchner's time on the top half of the sunbathed Corviglia course, where the finish is at altitude above 2,000 meters (6,500 feet).

Vonn then was faster than anyone through the next speed checks, touching 119 kph (74 mph), and posted the fastest time splits for the bottom half.

She skied through the finish area and bumped against the inflated safety barrier, lay down in the snow and raised her arms on seeing her time.

Vonn got up, punched the air with her right fist and shrieked with joy before putting her hands to her left cheek in a