Mikaela Shiffrin may not have begun her Winter Olympics on a solid note this time, but she has a knack for comebacks. Over a year ago, the four-time Olympic skier had experienced a near-fatal injury that nearly ended her career, but within two months, she was back in action.
The slalom specialist had recently teamed up with Breezy Johnson for the mixed team parallel event. The duo narrowly missed the podium, finishing fourth, while their teammates Jacqueline Wiles and Paula Moltzan went on to win the bronze medal.
Mikaela Shiffrin’s Injury History & Comebacks Explained
Shiffrin has a history of injuries that dates back nearly a decade, but the American’s comebacks have been just as compelling. The alpine skier has been competing at the elite level for more than 15 years. Her first major setback came in December 2015, when she injured her knee during a warm-up session in Åre, Sweden.
The injury occurred just a year after her breakthrough Olympic debut at the 2014 Sochi Winter Olympics, where Shiffrin won a gold medal. She recovered quickly and returned to competition within two months, though she did miss several World Cup events, a disruption that affected her rhythm and performance to some extent.
READ MORE: What Mikaela Shiffrin Said After Missing Team Combined Podium Despite Breezy Johnson’s Fast Lead
Shiffrin then remained injury-free, winning one championship after another, until January 2024, when she had a major crash in Cortina d’Ampezzo [one of the two host cities for the Milano Cortina Winter Olympics], which severely damaged her left leg and ligaments. Despite the setback, Shiffrin took just six weeks to recover, winning two slalom World Cup events in a row.
However, it was the World Cup event at Killington, Vermont, in November 2024, that nearly brought the five-time World Cup champion’s career to a standstill. Shiffrin tumbled into the two gates midway during the race and hit the catch fencing. She sustained a puncture wound in the abdomen and had to undergo surgery to treat the same.
Still, Shiffrin refused to give up and returned in time for the 2025 World Championships. She didn’t win an individual gold medal, but she did win a team gold medal. The 30-year-old won one World Cup meet after another in order to prove her mettle as a champion skier in time for the Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics.
The American is aiming to end her Olympic medal drought at the Winter Olympics. She returned without a medal despite being one of the top favorites at the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics, with her best performance coming, ironically, in the team combined event, where she finished fourth overall.
The slalom champ has a total of three Winter Olympic medals to her credit. She also won a gold medal and a silver medal at the 2018 PyeongChang Winter Olympics, and will now contest for Olympic glory in the women’s giant slalom and the slalom events. If all goes well, Shiffrin may also take part in the women’s Super G event soon.
