Mikaela Shiffrin shared that competing for your country brings not only emotional pride but also immense pressure and a deep sense of responsibility toward everyone who supports you, including family, fans, teammates, and coaches.
When those expectations aren’t met, Shiffrin added, it can be challenging to live with the narrative.
What Did Mikaela Shiffrin Say About Representing the Country?
Shiffrin had a disappointing campaign at the 2022 Beijing Olympics, returning home empty-handed despite participating in multiple events.
Speaking about the emotional pressure of competing the USA on the Olympic stage in a recent interview with Powder.com, she noted, “There’s this kind of pressure that comes with wanting with all of your soul to perform for your country, to represent your home, family, friends, and fans, and everyone who’s worked with you along the way, your whole team.”
“Not being able to exceed whatever expectations might be set, repercussions might not be the right word, but let’s go with that for now, it can be hard to live in that narrative and still prioritize the things that are more important for you as an athlete,” the 30-year-old further mentioned.
Named to the 2025-26 Stifel U.S. Alpine Ski Team alongside the likes of Lindsey Vonn, who came out of retirement last season and Ryan Cochran-Siegle, the 2022 Olympics Super-G medalist, Shiffrin is already gearing up for her fourth Olympic journey and will hope to redeem herself this time.
The skiing prodigy first captured global attention at the Winter Olympics 2014, winning slalom gold and etching her name in history as the event’s youngest Olympic champion. From her three Olympic appearances, she has added two more medals to her tally, including a giant slalom gold and a combined silver, both won at the 2018 Games.
MORE: Mikaela Shiffrin Shares She Knows ‘Nothing’ About the Olympics Over 100 World Cup Wins Later
Shiffrin Opens Up on Current Form and Readiness for Upcoming Season
Shiffrin recently opened up about not feeling at her peak performance level as the new alpine skiing season is underway. Last season, the American scripted history by surpassing the 100-win milestone and capped it off with her 101st World Cup victory in the slalom at the Sun Valley Finals in Idaho on March 27, 2025.
In a recent interview with People.com, she talked about her form, “To be perfectly honest, right now I’m not at winning speed. Sometimes that can be a tough pill to swallow when you’re heading into the race season. It’s like, ‘I need to be ready to race, but I’m not quite ready.'”
Although not race-ready at the moment, Shiffrin is no stranger to successful comebacks. Last season, she bounced back impressively to claim her 101st career win despite suffering a significant setback, a serious crash and puncture injury in Killington back in November. Following her return, she also captured team gold in the women’s combined event alongside her compatriot Breezy Johnson.