Mikaela Shiffrin flawless in slalom as Olympic countdown intensifies

Mikaela Shiffrin heads into the Christmas break with plenty of reasons to feel confident as the Olympic season gathers momentum.

The American superstar has been flawless in slalom so far this winter, winning all four World Cup races in the discipline. At the same time, she is steadily rebuilding her competitiveness in other events after enduring the two most serious crashes of her career.

Shiffrin says her success hasn’t come without strain, even when the margins suggest dominance.

“So far this season I’ve been able to find top-level turns when it really matters,” she explained. “From the outside it might look like there’s no pressure when I’ve won the race before or built a big lead, but every time I’m in the start gate it feels completely new. I’ve had to dig extremely deep to produce that quality skiing. It’s never easy, and it takes a huge amount of effort.”

This weekend, Shiffrin returns to Semmering, Austria, a venue that has played a major role in her historic career. Seven of her record-breaking 105 World Cup victories have come at the resort. On two occasions — in 2016 and again in 2022 — she swept all three races held there across a single weekend.

This year’s schedule at Semmering is shorter, with a giant slalom on Saturday followed by a slalom on Sunday.

Progress beyond slalom

Although slalom has been her strongest discipline this season, Shiffrin continues to work toward regaining her peak form in giant slalom and speed events. She owns a record 22 World Cup wins in giant slalom but has not reached the podium in the discipline since before her violent crash in Killington, Vermont, last season. That fall left her with a deep puncture wound and significant damage to her oblique muscles.

Even so, signs of progress are emerging. Shiffrin has finished fourth twice in giant slalom this season, including her most recent race in Tremblant, Canada.

“It’s going to take patience,” she said. “The goal is just to keep moving forward. Maybe it’s about building repetition and confidence from the level I’m skiing in slalom.”

Shiffrin has also taken a tentative step back into speed racing. Earlier this month, she competed in a super-G in St. Moritz, Switzerland — her first speed race since crashing during a downhill in Cortina d’Ampezzo nearly two years ago. While she was tracking toward a respectable result, she missed the final gate.

Despite that setback, the race marked meaningful progress toward a larger objective: potentially adding super-G to her Olympic schedule at the Milan-Cortina Winter Games, where women’s alpine events will take place in Cortina.

“Super-G is a major goal for me,” she said. “Even outside the Olympics, I want to return to strong form in the World Cup in that discipline.”

Slalom dominance and mental strength

In slalom, Shiffrin’s confidence is unmistakable. She has routinely won races by large margins — averaging about 1.5 seconds — and has shown an ability to recover instantly from small mistakes during runs.

That consistency represents a dramatic turnaround from the latter part of last season, when she was openly battling post-traumatic stress disorder following her crash in Killington.

“At this point, when something disrupts my rhythm, my response feels automatic,” Shiffrin explained. “In my head it’s like hitting the gas pedal.”

One more slalom victory would equal the best opening run of her career in the discipline. During the 2018–19 season, she won the first five slalom races. Including the final slalom of last winter, she is currently on a five-race winning streak.

The longest slalom winning streak of her career stands at seven victories, a feat she has accomplished twice.

Olympic ambitions and team possibilities

Already a two-time Olympic gold medalist — winning slalom in 2014 and giant slalom in 2018 — Shiffrin could compete in as many as four events at the upcoming Winter Games. Her potential program includes slalom, giant slalom, super-G, and the newly introduced team combined event.

Last season at the world championships, Shiffrin teamed up with downhill specialist Breezy Johnson to win gold in the combined event. The format pairs one athlete for a downhill run with a teammate for a slalom run, with their combined times determining the final standings.

There could be renewed intrigue around that event in Cortina. Lindsey Vonn previously attempted to partner with Shiffrin in the combined at world championships without success. However, Vonn’s impressive return to form this season at age 41 has reopened the possibility of a high-profile pairing — one that could become a true “Dream Team” on the Olympic stage.

As Shiffrin builds toward Milan-Cortina, her slalom perfection offers stability, while her expanding ambitions across disciplines hint at an Olympic campaign that could be one of the most versatile and demanding of her storied career.