Featured Image: Mikaela Shiffrin celebrating after a World Cup win. Credit: GEPA

Mikaela Shiffrin’s unbelievably successful career led to her inclusion in ESPN’s list of the top 100 professional athletes of the 21st century. The list was stacked with athletes who have achieved successes that were unimaginable before in the world of sports.

ESPN professionals and 70,000 votes from ESPN contributors ranked professional athletes since 2000 to decide who has been the greatest athlete of the past 25 years. Previously, the ESPN SportsCentury project ranked the top 100 North American athletes of the 20th century, but this time around, they broadened their pool to choices beyond North American athletes.

On both this list and the 20th-century North American list from ESPN, Mikaela Shiffrin was the only alpine ski racer to achieve a top-100 ranking.

In the 21st century, there were several more female athletes added to the list. Mikaela Shiffrin was ranked 8th among females, following Serena Williams (ranked 2nd), Simone Biles (ranked 7th), and five other top female superstars from various sports.

In the article, David Schoenfield, a senior writer at ESPN, initiates a discussion by stating, “Let the arguments begin,” focusing on the intense passion people have for sports and their favorite athletes. Several debates arose on social media regarding Shiffrin’s ranking at 44 on the list, with supporters advocating for her placement higher among other top athletes. Many highlighted her significant contributions to the sport and her achievements among both male and female athletes.

As the most successful alpine ski racer in history, Shiffrin has heightened the bar for both men and women in this sport. We know that she is the G.O.A.T., but to name a few highlights from her career:

• The most World Cups won amongst men and women, with a record of 97 victories.
• She achieved one silver and two gold medals at the Winter Olympic Games; she was the youngest slalom gold medalist in Olympic history.
• Earned five overall World Cup Crystal Globes
• Eight slalom World Cup titles, which is a record in one discipline
• The first U.S. ski racer, amongst men and women, to have won a race in each of the World Cup’s six disciplines
• Holding the FIS World Cup record for the most wins in one season, clinching victory 17 times in the 2019 season.

Let’s not forget that during this past season, Shiffrin was out for six weeks due to knee injuries from a crash in the Cortina d’Ampezzo World Cup downhill race, but was still able to come back and achieve a slalom globe. She is all about shattering records and achieving the unimaginable. ESPN’s acknowledgment of Shiffrin’s successes and the sport of alpine ski racing is another grand achievement.