Jess Anderson
BBC Sport in Cortina

Surely a name like Breezy Johnson is an unfair advantage for a speed skier?

So the first five riders are down. Eight more to go before it's Lindsey Vonn time.

As things stand, Austria's Ariane Raedler is in the gold medal position with a time of one minute and 37.20 seconds.

Italy's Federica Brignone is second, 0.09 seconds behind, while Switzerland's Janine Schmitt is in third - 1.08 seconds behind Raedler.

Reigning world champion Breezy Johnson is up next...

Chemmy Alcott
Four-time Olympic alpine ski racer to BBC Sport

Chemmy speaking after taking a run down the course, external herself...

There is an ideal line on this downhill.

That line has been slipped over the last 2 days by hundreds of volunteers compressing the snow into an amazing and fast surface but the track in some sections of the course is ONLY 1.5m to 2m wide!

That is very narrow. That means there is one racers line. If the athletes veer out of this track they will bleed a huge amount of speed and have no chance of victory.

Image source, Getty Images

If there's an Olympics event with hype, you can guarantee Snoop Dogg will be there lapping it up.

The American rapper is sporting stars and stripes, no doubt cheering on Lindsey Vonn.

A great run from Italy's Federica Brignone, but she finishes 0.09 seconds behind Austria's Ariane Raedler in first.

Fine, fine margins.

Jess Anderson
BBC Sport in Cortina

A huge roar for bib number three Federica Brignone as the Italian takes to the course.

Known as the snow tiger, she wears a helmet with a tiger’s face on the top.

Coming back from a serious leg break just last year, the 35-year-old is not one to rule out of the medals.

Image source, Getty Images

Chemmy Alcott
Four-time Olympic alpine ski racer to BBC Sport

I spoke to Lindsey Vonn's team. Their focus is on her enjoying the day. They don’t seem result orientated and that’s a healthy way to be.

Jess Anderson
BBC Sport in Cortina

The vertical drop of this course is 760m and let me tell you there are some seriously STEEP sections.

Excitement is building here at Tofane as we prepare to see the best skiers in the world tackle this iconic course.

They’ll get up to speeds of around 85mph as they come down. Anyone fancy it?

The first rider is down. Swiss skier Malorie Blanc finishes her run in one minute and 38.77 seconds.

She seems pretty happy with that.

Image source, Getty Images

Chemmy Alcott
Four-time Olympic alpine ski racer to BBC Sport

It's an absolutely impeccable track. These are the Cortina conditions that we love and expect.

These athletes are excited and grateful to be here.

Here we go then! Switzerland's Malorie Blanc gets us up and running (or skiing) in the women's downhill.

Image source, Getty Images

Jess Anderson
BBC Sport in Cortina

What Lindsey Vonn is attempting to do is incredible. But she’s up against it today in a stacked field.

Her compatriot Breezy Johnson said this was one of the most competitive races on the schedule at this year’s Games and we could see some incredibly tight times. Johnson herself is one to watch while Switzerland’s Camille Rast is another.

Plus, there is no doubt the crowd will get behind home favourite Sofia Goggia, who became the first Italian woman to win Olympic Alpine skiing gold in the downhill at Pyeongchang 2018, finishing with silver at Bejing 2022. And let’s not forget Federica Brignone, not long back from a serious leg break. Nicknamed the snow tiger, she’ll be in with a shout today.

This is undoubtedly the hottest ticket in town today. Even the driver this morning on the way here was asking me who would win this race. Being Italian, his money was on Goggia of course.

The women's downhill will start in five minutes, and for all you Lindsey Vonn fans out there, she will be the 13th skier to go.

The reigning world champion Breezy Johnson (what a name by the way) will go in sixth so we should have a good idea of the standard before Vonn sets off.

Yesterday, Lindsey Vonn Vonn hit back at a doctor's claim that her ACL injury is "not a fresh tear".

Sports medicine doctor Brian Sutterer claimed the 2010 Olympic downhill champion may have already been functioning on a torn ACL before the crash, which saw her airlifted to hospital.

But she disputed that claim, saying her ACL is "100% gone".

"Lol thanks doc. My ACL was fully functioning until last Friday. Just because it seems impossible to you doesn't mean it's not possible," Vonn said.

"And yes, my ACL is 100% ruptured. Not 80% or 50%. It's 100% gone."

Read more about Vonn's injury.

Image source, Getty Images

Image source, Reuters

The men's qualifying and elimination round for the men's parallel giant slalom has just finished.

World champion Roland Fishchnaller of Italy qualified for the knockouts as the fastest rider with a time of one minute 25.13 seconds.

Compatriot Aaron March, who is competing at his fourth Games, finished in second and just 0.95 seconds behind Fishchnaller.

Reigning Olympic champion Benjamin Karl of Austria qualified in third.

The knockout stages will start this afternoon from 12:24 GMT - not a minute before, or after!

"I wouldn't even try this if it wasn't in Cortina."

Cortina d'Ampezzo holds a special place in Lindsey Vonn's heart, with the American winning a medal in 44% of her races at the resort.

She's won gold in 12 of her 45 starts and she is often referred to as 'Queen of the Dolomites'.

Image source, Getty Images

Chemmy Alcott
Four-time Olympic alpine ski racer to BBC Sport

We have seen people race with an ACL injury before, but have we seen people win an Olympic medal at 85mph? No.

For anyone else it would be absolutely off the charts. But no-one else is Lindsey Vonn.

She is a once-in-a-lifetime kind of athlete shooting for a once-in-a-lifetime gold. Right now, she's relying on the fact that mentally she is so strong.

You can not underestimate her want for this Olympic gold medal on a track that she's had so much success on. She has proved us all wrong so many times before but this really is the tip of the iceberg.

I am all for it, I cannot wait to be there to support this wonderful athlete who is just always showing us that nothing can beat her down.

Image source, Getty Images

This was just nine days ago, when Lindsey Vonn was airlifted to hospital after crashing in a downhill race in Switzerland.

The four-time world champion lost control after landing a jump before colliding into the safety netting.

She said shortly after that her "Olympic dream is not over", so will we see her out on the slopes today?

Jess Anderson
BBC Sport in Cortina

When Lindsey Vonn announced to a packed press conference in Cortina on Tuesday that she had torn her left anterior cruciate ligament, there were groans of disappointment from reporters.

When she said she would still compete in today’s downhill event, there were chuckles.

What Vonn is aiming to do today is not normal. But Vonn is not a normal athlete.

The 41-year-old retired in 2019 with what was, at the time, a record number of women’s World Cup race wins. Injuries were beginning to take their toll and Vonn decided to call it a day.

But following a partial knee replacement on her right knee in April 2024, she returned to elite competition later that year. That was criticised at the time but Vonn is not the type to shy away from a challenge.

This year she arrived in Cortina with two World Cup race wins and three more podium finishes this season and was, before her crash, one of the favourites for the gold medal. She knows her chances now are slim. But, at what will be her final Olympics, there was no way she was going down without trying.