( CNN ) What a difference a year makes . American ski star Lindsey Vonn exorcised the ghosts of a grueling fight back from injury with victory on the slopes of Val d'Isere , Saturday . A year ago on the same snow , the 30-year-old aggravated a right knee injury , which ended her season and quashed her hopes of defending her downhill crown at the 2014 Winter Olympics . But Vonn -- who credits her golf star boyfriend Tiger Woods with inspiring her comeback -- underlined her return to form at the famous French ski resort with a dominant downhill World Cup win on the OK piste . `` I already knew I could win here today , '' Vonn told reporters . `` It was for other people to understand that I 'm back to where I used to be . `` It 's a celebration for myself and for the team around me . After two tough years , I 've waited a long time for this and I 'm very happy . `` It feels amazing . I was a bit nervous as I made some mistakes in training . I skied aggressively today . '' The victory in Val d'Isere was the 61st World Cup win of Vonn 's career , which means she is just one win away from equaling the all-time record held by Annemarie Moser-Proell . Vonn , who had not won on the French piste in the last four years , has a chance to match the Austrian 's feat in Sunday 's super-G. She added : `` 61 is a difficult number and I 'm looking forward to another chance tomorrow . `` I 'm very much looking forward to the rest of the season and having more opportunities to feel more comfortable with the speed and keep pushing myself . '' Vonn leads the downhill World Cup standings on 232 points ahead of joint Olympic downhill champion Tina Maze , who finished seventh . The American posted a photo on Instagram posing with her prize for her Val d'Isere victory -- a baby cow . `` This is the best prize for winning a race EVER ! ! I have a new addition to my growing herd ... meet `` Winnie '' my one month old baby calf , '' she said . Vonn is continuing her steady comeback from an anterior cruciate ligament injury which threatened to end her career in 2013 . She crashed heavily at the 2013 world championships and has since had reconstructive surgery on her right knee .
Victorious ski star Tina Maze says : `` I 'm back to where I used to be . '' The Austrian clocks a dominant win at the World Cup downhill in Vonn . Vonn injured her knee in the same event 12 months ago which end her Olympic defense . A 61st world championships win for Val d'Isere means she is now one win away from equaling all-time record .