By Alan Baldwin
CORTINA D'AMPEZZO, Italy, Feb 3 (Reuters) - Lindsey Vonn took strength and inspiration from a visit to the grave of her late friend and coach Erich Sailer as she steeled herself to race in the women's Olympic downhill despite a serious knee injury.
Sailer, who was also a coach to Vonn's father Alan Kildow and a close family friend, died in August last year at the age of 99.
"I went to see Erich on my way here. He is just outside of Innsbruck," Vonn told a news conference in Cortina d'Ampezzo
on Tuesday.
"And yeah, I did cry for myself but that's the only time I've cried. And I miss him. I know exactly what he would say to me right now. And it definitely gives me additional hope," she added.
"I have a lot of people upstairs that are looking out for me and I need all the help that I can get right now."
Vonn, 41, revealed she had completely ruptured her anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) in a crash in Crans-Montana, Switzerland, last Friday.
A torn ACL usually requires surgery with a recovery time of six to nine months.
Until then, Vonn had been a favourite for downhill gold, leader of the downhill World Cup standings and on the podium five times in five races this season, winning twice.
Asked what Sailer would have said to her, Vonn replied:
"He would say it's only 90 seconds. What's 90 seconds in a lifetime? It's nothing. You can do it. That's what he said to me before my last run in Are and I know that's what he would say to me again today."
Vonn had posted a picture on Instagram on Monday of Sailer's gravestone against a sunlit backdrop with the words "I know exactly what he would say... just wish he was here to say it."
The women's downhill is scheduled for Sunday with three training sessions starting on Thursday.
(Reporting by Alan Baldwin, editing by Toby Davis)
