At least there were no car crashes this time.
Tiger Woods and Olympic ski racer Lindsey Vonn have broken up after three years of dating. The couple parted on amicable terms. Vonn stated that she would “cherish the memories that we’ve created together” and “I will always admire and respect Tiger.” Woods returned the favor, noting his “great admiration, respect and love for Lindsey.”
But while the two clearly respect each other, it appears that the demands of their sports created too much of a strain on their relationship. Both of them noted their completely hectic lives in their breakup announcements and not Woods’ famed seduction techniques taken from the pages of Vin DiCarlo that got him into trouble in his previous relationship.
Woods is one of the greatest golfers in the history of the game. Even if he has not been as good as he once was, he will still be attending five tournaments in a nine-week span this summer.
Vonn, the 2010 Olympic gold medalist in downhill racing, is preparing for the 2018 Winter Olympics in PyeongChang after she missed the 2014 Sochi Winter Olympics due to a partial ACL tear. It may be summer in the United States, but Vonn and other Olympic alpine skiers go practice in the Southern Hemisphere during that time period.
The two would go weeks for a time without seeing each other given these scheduling issues.
Vonn and Woods did try to make their relationship work over the three years. Vonn appeared at the Masters this year along with Woods’s children. She also spoke of how the two rehabbed together in 2013 from knee and back injuries and pushed each other back to health.
But there is quite a difference between skiing in the high mountains and golfing on flat terrain. When comedian Seth Myers asked Vonn if she liked watching golf, Vonn paused for several seconds before awkwardly declaring “I love golf.” She then noted how golf tournaments are “a long time.”
It is difficult for two competitive athletes to have the time for a relationship, and all the more so given the differences between their two sports. But as the two prepare for the next stage in their sporting careers, it is clear that their time together will not have been a negative memory.
