More Crystal for Lindsey Vonn

MERIBEL, France (March 19, 2015) - Standing in the start house, Lindsey Vonn (Vail, CO) knew the scenario - Austria's Anna Fenninger was in the lead and it would take a win to claim the title. Even with that pressure on her shoulders, Vonn skied aggressively down the Roc de Fer and claimed her 67th World Cup victory and 19th Audi FIS Ski World Cup crystal globe, sweeping the speed titles in the World Cup Finals at Meribel. Fenninger was second, expanding her overall World Cup lead over third place Tina Maze of Slovenia to 32 points with two races to go.

Vonn's 19 World Cup titles is the most of any woman in history, and matches the mark set by Swedish great Ingemar Stenmark.

Vonn came into the super G with a narrow eight-point lead over Fenninger, who put down a stunning run to move into the lead from the 15th start position. But Vonn, skiing 19th, set the pace right from the top, arcing a direct line through the course to gain a .41 lead by the midway point. She hit the lower jump hard, soaring far but getting perfect bite in the soft snow with a left-footed turn to set herself up for the run to the finish line.

Lindsey Vonn screams for joy after winning the Audi FIS Ski World Cup super G title. (Getty Images/AFP-Jeff Pachoud)

"She put a lot of pressure on me," said Vonn. "I knew she was leading when I was at the top. I skied as hard as I could, especially on the bottom. I flew a long ways off the jump!"

The two titles capped a comeback season for Vonn, who underwent more knee surgery just 13 months earlier following a 2013 crash at the World Championships in Schladming, Austria. Vonn had come back for the 2014 Olympic season, but re-injured her knee, forcing her to sit out Sochi. Her comeback included a downhill win in Lake Louise in only her second race back. In January, she tied and then overtook Austrian Annemarie Moser-Proell for the most World Cup wins ever. Her battle with Fenninger for the speed titles came right down to the wire in Meribel.

"I’m definitely more proud of myself than I expected to be this season," said Vonn. "Things got off to a much quicker start than I thought winning in Lake Louise. I’ve had my ups and downs and some inconsistent results. But I’m extremely happy with my performance this season. Being away from the World Cup for almost two seasons is a long time. I think I solidified to myself and everyone else that I’m back."

In preparation for the World Cup Finals, Vonn made the strategic move to skip last weekend's technical races in Are, Sweden to train in Meribel. She had missed the World Cup in Meribel two years ago when she was out with the injury. Before the women's 11:00 a.m. local time start, Vonn spent time watch the men's super G to get a sense of the course and where she could take risks.

The World Cup Finals continue Saturday with women's slalom. America's Mikaela Shiffrin (Eagle-Vail, CO) holds a commanding 90-point lead over Sweden's Frida Hansdotter.

HIGHLIGHTS

• Lindsey Vonn skied aggressively to take her 67th career Audi FIS Ski World Cup win and the super G crystal globe.
• It was Vonn's 19th career World Cup title, and her fifth in super G.
• Laurenne Ross was 13th for the USA.
• Mikaela Shiffrin will make her Meribel World Cup Finals debut Saturday, holding a 90-point lead over Sweden's Frida Hansdotter in slalom.
• The USA will not enter  Friday's team event.