With the Milan Winter Olympics now fully underway, American alpine skiing sensation Mikaela Shiffrin reflected on how she did in her first event. Shiffrin, who is regarded as one of the favorites in the women’s slalom and giant slalom, competed in the team combined event alongside Breezy Johnson on February 10 in Milan, with the pair narrowly missing out on the podium by finishing in fourth overall.
The result stung for Shiffrin, who took on the slalom leg after Johnson’s morning downhill and recorded the fourth-slowest time, falling short of her own high expectations.
Mikaela Shiffrin on Her Performance
The team combined event is a brand-new event that replaced the traditional individual alpine combined event at the Olympics. In its debut, Austria’s team of Ariane Raedler (downhill) and Katharina Huber (slalom) took gold, with Germany’s team of Kira Weidle-Winkelmann and Emma Aicher taking silver. The USA’s 2nd team, which consisted of Jacqueline Wiles and Paula Moltzan, took bronze.
According to Olympics.com, Shiffrin made her feelings known during her display, citing unfamiliar course conditions.
“Coming to the finish… I wasn’t sure where that was going to end up because I could tell on the track that it wasn’t something like the rest of the season has been. I have a couple of ideas from my personal feeling, but we have to go back, watch the video, talk with the team about the ski equipment and everything,” she said.
“I didn’t get my comfort level, and I need to do, in the next training days, whatever I can to be able to get that comfort level for the next races. There were some things in the course or in the conditions that I think I actually can improve just in general that I don’t feel we’ve seen to this point this season. So that’s something that I will try to take away.”
Next up, Shiffrin will tackle the women’s giant slalom on February 15, taking on two challenging runs down the storied Tofane course in Cortina d’Ampezzo, a venue where she has already carved out Olympic memories.
Shiffrin on Wiles and Moltzan’s Bronze
Shiffrin also expressed her praise for Wiles and Moltzan’s display in the event, with the duo finishing ahead of Shiffrin and Johnson by 0.06 seconds. Shiffrin stated that she was happy to see them receive their medals “after everything they’ve been through”, adding that they “earned it just as much as anybody”.
Now, Shiffrin sets her sights on redemption in the slalom, the very event where she captured Olympic gold at the 2014 Sochi Games.
