Lindsey Vonn on Her Triumphant 2026 Met Gala Moment: ‘This Is Kind of My Coming Out Party’
Nothing can stop Lindsey Vonn.
Less than three months after suffering a catastrophic crash at the Milano-Cortina Olympics that nearly resulted in a leg amputation, the decorated skier is standing on her own two feet on the 2026 Met Gala red carpet.
“I’ve been in such a different world, especially since my crash,” Vonn tells Vogue ahead of the 2026 Met Gala. “This is kind of my coming-out party—I get to be around people, wearing a dress that’s beautiful and feminine, and put my crutches down for the first time.” While Vonn took some test steps during her fitting, “Monday will be the first few steps that I take—definitely first stairs—without crutches,” she says. “I’m excited, for many reasons, to get to that point.”
Thom Browne transformed Vonn into one of the centuries-old statues that line the halls of the museum—a nod to the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s “Costume Art” exhibit, which centers the dressed body in fine art. For the skiing legend, Browne channeled the “classical body” subsection of the exhibit, which is chiefly concerned with Hellenistic and Roman art. “When he sent me the sketch, I didn’t know what to expect, because Thom has a lot of variety in what he’s shown at the Met,” Vonn says. But she fell in love right away. “I had no notes.”
Browne’s atelier embellished the body-conscious dress with beads for a trompe l’oeil marbling effect. While the beading mimics swirling limestone, the white, draped skirt pays homage to the garments in classical sculpture.
Vonn was, of course, excited to find a dress that accentuated her body, though it she also needed something safe to wear after her injury. “It’s actually very light and it moves really well,” she says. “It’s perfect for my body and the position that I’m in right now.”
Vonn first attended the Met Gala in 2010—“American Woman: Fashioning a National Identity,” was the exhibition—where she wore a violet open-back gown. She walked the Met steps again in 2013 for “Punk: Chaos to Couture” in a white sleeveless gown with sheer paneling. The 2026 Met Gala, however, is her most significant yet. “This is going to be really exciting for me,” Vonn says. “I’ve been so isolated for so long. It’s going to be nice to be around a lot of people that I know and care about, and celebrate the evening in the most beautiful dress I could imagine.”
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