Record-breaking American skier Lindsey Vonn is already "pretty bored" with life as a retired athlete even though it is only just over a week since the final race of her career.
Vonn had planned to retire after next season's FIS Alpine Skiing World Cup race at Lake Louise, but knee injuries meant she was forced to bring the date forward. Ahead of this month's FIS Alpine World Ski Championships in Are, Vonn announced she would take part in the super-G and downhill before calling it a day. She crashed in the super-G but made amends later in the week as she claimed a bronze medal in the downhill, finishing her time as a professional on the podium.
Vonn admitted the result in Sweden had been one of the highlights of her career, though settling into life away from the sport has not been an easy adjustment.
"It's kind of scary," she told Omnisport at the Laureus World Sports Awards when asked about retirement life. "I'm pretty bored! I wake up and go, 'Oh, I don't have to go to the gym today. OK, what do I do?'
"But I think I'll grow into it and figure a lot of things out. I have a lot of projects in the future but I definitely retired earlier than expected so I have got a little time on my hands and I don't know what to do with it."
When speaking at a media conference after being awarded Laureus' Spirit of Sport accolade, Vonn hinted she may turn to other sports to try to replicate the adrenaline rush that comes from skiing.
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"I have no idea [what I'm going to do]," she said. "I'm trying to organise some car racing with Red Bull so I can get the adrenaline out of my system, maybe once a year I can just go rip around the track a little bit! But I don't think anything will replace ski racing, it's very unique and I've always felt something special when I'm in the starting gate.
"It's one of the reasons why I'm so emotional to have to retire this way."
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