(ATR)The record holder for most World Cup races won in alpine skiing is the first honorary international ambassador for the 2018 Winter Olympics in PyeongChang, South Korea.
Lindsey Vonn joins nine other South Koreans already named ambassadors for the Games, but is the first person not from the host country to represent the event.
Among other ambassadors are Olympic figure skating champ Yu-Na Kim and Major League Baseball outfielder Shin-Soo Choo.
Oft considered the most successful alpine skier, Vonn currently holds the number-one world-ranking in women’s downhill and is ranked second in Super G. She is also a four-time World Cup champion and took home gold in downhill skiing at the 2010 Games in Vancouver.
Although Vonn sat out the 2014 Winter Olympics with a knee injury, she hopes to compete in PyeongChang. Vonn holds 67 World Cup skiing wins, five of which earned after missing the Sochi Games.
With three years left before PyeongChang, Vonn visited the host city this week to see some of the venues in construction and attend a press conference after her announcement as ambassador.
''The site looks very challenging ... It's very steep and [has] a lot of jumps, which I really like. I'm looking forward to seeing it with the snow on and actually being able to run the course," Vonn said of the venue.
Vonn will be 33 when she competes for gold in PyeongChang.
Written by Kevin Nutley
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