Lindsey Vonn won't compete in world championships due to injury

COPPER MOUNTAIN, Colo., Nov. 23 (UPI) -- U.S. skier Lindsey Vonn's recent knee injury will keep her out of the world championships next weekend but she says don't count her out for the Winter Olympics.

Vonn, 29, sustained a mild strain and a partial tear to the anterior cruciate ligament in her right knee during a fall while training Tuesday at the U.S. Ski Team Speed Center at Copper Mountain, Colo.

She severely injured the knee when she crashed during a race at the February 2013 World Championships, tearing the ACL and medial collateral ligament in the knee. She also had a fractured tibia.

Vonn posted on Facebook Friday that she hoped to be back on the slopes soon, People magazine said.

"Rehab is going well and I am working as hard as I can to race in Lake Louise in a few weeks," she wrote.

The U.S. Ski Team said in a release Vonn's "rehab is progressing" but she won't compete in the Nov. 29 Nature Valley Raptor women's World Cup in Beaver Creek, Colo.

There was speculation Vonn's injury would keep her from competing in the 2014 Olympics, scheduled for Feb. 7-23 in Sochi, Russia.

"Don't worry guys, this is only a temporary setback," she wrote. "Nothing will keep me from picking myself back up and continuing to fight for my dreams. #sochi2014 #whenyoufallgetbackup #notstopping #workinghard"

Vonn is a four-time overall world champion, winning in 2008-10 and again in 2012. She had a large lead in the standings before the accident last February.

She has won races in all five women's skiing disciplines and took the downhill gold medal at the 2010 Olympics.