Gold medalist Lindsey Vonn nearing return to snow

Lindsey Vonn says her knee is healthy and she ready to return to skiing. (Alexis Boichard/Agence Zoom/Getty Images)

Four-time overall World Cup champion Lindsey Vonn said her injured right knee is strong and she is ready to return to skiing.

Vonn tore the ACL and MCL ligaments in her right knee during a bad crash at the world championships in Schladming, Austria, six months ago.

"Because I feel like I'm claustrophobic when I'm not skiing," Vonn said to The Associated Press on Wednesday. "I just want to go fast."

The timetable was for Vonn to return to the slopes sometime in November, but she said she planning to ski this weekend in Portillo, Chile.

"But my expectations are sometimes a little bit out of whack," Vonn said.

PHOTO GALLERY: Lindsey Vonn Swimsuit Collection 

She will try to defend her downhill title at the Sochi Olympics in February and says she expects to win.

"I wouldn't change my odds, just because I was injured," Vonn, whose doctor says she must wear a brace on the knee, said. "We're negotiating, He'd rather I wear it to have a little bit more stability."