WATCH: Olympic Gold Medal Skier Lindsey Vonn's Accident

She was airlifted to a hospital in Austria today after a frightening crash during the Alpine World Championships in Schladming. Vonn lost her balance after landing awkwardly from a jump ... losing her ski and skidding into a gate.

Doctors evaluated Vonn for more than ten minutes on the slope before she was loaded on to a helicopter and flown to a nearby hospital. According to reports, the doctor who examined Vonn says he believes she suffered a tibial plateau fracture -- also known as a break in the shinbone.