Lindsey Vonn chosen as AP’s 2010 Female Athlete of Year
Wednesday, December 29th, 2010
Lindsey Vonn remembers being a 9-year-old wannabe Olympian, waiting in line for hours on end to shake the hand of a medal-winning skier and get an autograph.
These days, Vonn is the one speeding to victories and hoping to inspire the next generation to hit the slopes.
Gold and bronze medals at the Vancouver Games, plus a third consecutive World Cup overall title, helped Vonn become the 2010 Female Athlete of the Year, chosen by members of The Associated Press. She is the first skier – male or female – to win one of the annual AP awards, which began in 1931.
Vonn received 77 of 175 votes submitted by news organizations that make up the AP’s membership, more than double what anyone else got in the tally announced Saturday.
“For sure, 2010 was the best year I’ve ever had,” the 26-year-old Vonn said in a telephone interview from France, where she won a World Cup downhill race Saturday. “It couldn’t have gone any better for me. Even if I just won the Olympic gold medal, that would have made it the best year of my career and the best day of my life, period. Winning the World Cup races and the overall title just topped it off.” (more…)
