American skiier Lindsey Vonn has hinted the 2018 Winter Olympic Games in Pyeongchang could be her last after her place on the USA team was confirmed this week.

Vonn will compete at her fourth winter Games in South Korea next month and is hoping to add to the gold and bronze medals she won at Vancouver 2010 in downhill and Super-G respectively.

The 33-year-old has been plagued with serious knee injuries in recent seasons, which also caused her to miss Sochi 2014 after she crashed out at the 2013 World Championships, but she has hit form by winning a World Cup event in Italy last week.

The triumph in Cortina – the 79th of her 18-year career to date and 40th in the downhill event – extends Vonn’s dominance in the sport as the most successful female alpine skiier of all time and leaves her seven World Cup wins behind Sweden’s Ingemar Stenmark, who had 86 victories in the men’s discipline.

However, in a post on social media Vonn suggested she is set to make her final appearance as a USA athlete at a winter Games, with the latest edition beginning on February 9.

Vonn posted a photograph on Instagram at Thursday lunchtime which compared images from her first Olympics in 2002 to the team announcement made on Wednesday evening with the caption: “This is crazy, my first Olympics at 17 in Salt Lake City vs what will probably be my last olympics in South Korea at 33.

“How times have changed. I’ve been through so much since my dream came true of becoming an Olympian but all of the sacrifice, hard work and adversity has been worth it because it’s made me who I am today.

“I’m so proud to be representing our country one more time. Let’s do this Team USA!!”

The Vail-based skiier also replied to a comment on Twitter a couple hours later when asked if next month’s Winter Oympics was to be her last, she said: “In all likelihood, yes.

“I would love to ski longer but unfortunately I don’t think my body will hold up. So I’m preparing for this to be my last games.”