AP photographer captures defining photos of Lindsey Vonn’s downhill crash at the Winter Olympics

By Jacquelyn Martin

AP photographer Jacquelyn Martin scored one of the biggest beats in the early days of the Winter Olympics with her gripping sequence of Lindsey Vonn crashing out of the women’s downhill in what may be her final Games.

With Vonn’s return from retirement making her one of the top U.S. storylines, Martin and AP’s photo team carefully planned their positions ahead of the race. They evaluated sightlines, course speed and background, weighing where the strongest images might emerge.

Martin rode multiple chairlifts and skied with heavy camera gear to reach her position, then walked the slope to fine-tune her angle. She set up high on the course and low to the snow, composing a clean frame with the Dolomites in the background, using an extremely high shutter speed and rapid frame rate to anticipate the split-second action.

The resulting photos captured a moment missed by other major wire services. The images were quickly filed and became the lead visuals across major outlets. A companion video in which Martin described her preparation and the crash itself further extended the impact.

Judges said Martin captured “the definitive photos of the story everyone was talking about,” praising both the planning and the execution.

For careful planning and split-second execution that gave AP unrivaled photos of a top Olympic story, Jacquelyn Martin wins this week’s Best of AP — Second Winner.