Shiffrin Extends World Cup Slalom Winning Run Despite Criticism of Night Race Conditions

Mikaela Shiffrin extended her remarkable World Cup slalom winning run on Sunday night in Semmering, Austria, but the American superstar made it clear that victory did little to mask her frustration with what she described as unsafe race conditions.

United States’ Mikaela Shiffrin smiles after winning an alpine ski, women’s World Cup slalom in Semmering, Austria, Sunday, Dec. 28, 2025. (AP Photo/Pier Marco Tacca)

After sweeping the first four slalom races of the season, Shiffrin narrowly preserved her unbeaten streak in the final event of the calendar year, edging out reigning world champion Camille Rast of Switzerland in a dramatic night race. Yet rather than celebrating another milestone in her extraordinary career, Shiffrin used her post-race interviews to strongly criticise the state of the Panorama course, arguing that the deteriorating surface placed many competitors at unnecessary risk.

The 29-year-old entered the second run trailing by nearly half a second after an uneven first descent. Despite that deficit, she produced a trademark response under pressure, delivering the fastest run of the evening to overhaul Rast and secure her 106th career World Cup victory. However, the conditions under which the race was staged dominated her reflections afterward.

Speaking to Austrian television, Shiffrin did not hold back. She said that while early starters like herself were less affected, the situation was unfair and dangerous for those with higher bib numbers. According to her, athletes starting further down the order faced a course that had already broken apart, leaving deep ruts and holes that made skiing both unpredictable and intimidating.

Recent mild weather had taken its toll on the slope, forcing organizers to attempt to reinforce the surface by injecting water and salt into the snow. Despite those efforts, the track deteriorated rapidly during the afternoon session, which began shortly after 2 p.m. As temperatures rose, more sections of the course broke down, making it increasingly difficult for later starters to navigate safely.

Only 40 of the 77 competitors who began the first run managed to reach the finish, a striking statistic that highlighted the difficulty of the conditions. Remarkably, a time gap of nearly six seconds was still enough to qualify for the second run, underscoring just how spread out the field became as the surface worsened.

Conditions improved marginally for the night session, which took place several hours later once temperatures dropped. While Shiffrin acknowledged that the second run was better, she remained frustrated by what she described as a chaotic and distracting race day. She stressed that while she was relieved there were no serious injuries, the way the snow broke apart was unacceptable at the highest level of the sport.

In her view, ski racing should be demanding but not frightening. She argued that athletes should be excited to race rather than fearful when they inspect the course and see massive holes forming within the first few turns. Shiffrin emphasized that there are better ways to prepare and manage courses, particularly for night events where changing temperatures add another layer of complexity.

Despite her concerns, Shiffrin once again demonstrated why she remains the benchmark in women’s slalom. After finishing fourth in the opening run, more than half a second off the lead, she delivered a near-flawless second run to post the fastest time of the race. Rast, who had led after the first run, could not quite match Shiffrin’s pace and finished just 0.09 seconds behind. Teenager Lara Colturi, the 19-year-old Italian-born skier representing Albania, completed the podium in third, 0.57 seconds off the winning time.

In a course-side interview following the race, Shiffrin admitted the day had been mentally and physically draining. She described the conditions as extremely difficult and said the pressure was intense from start to finish. While she was proud of her effort, she confessed she did not expect to see the green light at the finish line, suggesting that even she was surprised by how the race unfolded.

United States’ Mikaela Shiffrin, winner of an alpine ski, women’s World Cup slalom, poses with the trophy in Semmering, Austria, Sunday, Dec. 28, 2025. (AP Photo/Pier Marco Tacca)
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Shiffrin explained that her mindset during the second run was simply to reset, remain positive, and give everything she had. That approach paid off once again, allowing her to maintain a perfect slalom record this season.

By winning five consecutive slalom races to open a campaign, Shiffrin matched the best start of her career, a feat she previously achieved during the 2018–19 season. Her current streak actually stretches back further, as she also claimed victory in the final slalom of last season before dominating the opening four races of the current Olympic cycle by an average margin of around 1.5 seconds. Sunday’s win was far narrower, but no less significant.

Reflecting on her first run, Shiffrin acknowledged that she made some tactical errors. Although she was marginally ahead of Rast midway down the course, she lost considerable time in the lower section. She suggested she may have been overskiing in places and taking lines that were too round compared to what was possible, especially on such a challenging surface.

Already the most successful slalom skier in women’s World Cup history with 69 victories in the discipline, Shiffrin further extended her advantage in the slalom standings. She now holds a commanding 220-point lead over Colturi. With a race win worth 100 points, that margin gives her a strong buffer heading into the next phase of the season.

The World Cup calendar features three more slalom races in January, followed by two additional events in March, all serving as crucial markers on the road to the Milan–Cortina Winter Olympics in 2026. Each race carries not only points but also momentum, confidence, and valuable feedback as athletes fine-tune their form for the biggest event in the sport.

Elsewhere in Semmering, Croatia’s Zrinka Ljutić, last season’s winner at the venue and the reigning slalom globe champion, struggled to find her rhythm and finished a distant eighth, more than 3.7 seconds behind Shiffrin.

It was also a difficult weekend for Shiffrin’s American teammate Paula Moltzan. After placing seventh in the first run, Moltzan straddled a gate and failed to finish the second. Her exit came just one day after a heavy crash in the giant slalom on the same hill, where she fell onto her back and head. That race was won by Austria’s Julia Scheib, who does not compete in slalom.

Following the demanding stop in Austria, the women’s World Cup circuit now moves on to Slovenia. Kranjska Gora will host a giant slalom and slalom next weekend, offering athletes another opportunity to test themselves as the Olympic season gathers momentum.

While Shiffrin’s results continue to underline her dominance, her comments in Semmering served as a reminder that even the sport’s greatest champions expect standards of safety and fairness to match the level of competition. Her victory may have extended a historic streak, but her strongest message of the night was a call for better conditions for everyone on the start list.