Shiffrin adds to record total with 84th win in another GS
KRONPLATZ,ITALY,25.JAN.23 – Mikaela Shiffrin. Photo: GEPA pictures
SAN VIGILIO DI MAREBBE, Italy — Mikaela Shiffrin didn’t wait long to add to her record total of World Cup wins.
A day after securing record victory No. 83, Shiffrin added her 84th on Wednesday in another giant slalom on the same course.
Shiffrin has done it one turn at a time, dedicating herself to the craft she is driven to do. It is not only turning skiing, but repetitions in the gym and the field. Her decades of discipline in all facets of her craft have culminated in 84 World Cup victories.
Just like Tuesday, Shiffrin led from start to finish, dominating the first run down the steep ERTA course and then adding to her advantage in the second run.
Like the greats before her, she offers fans an opportunity to witness incredible performances. However, behind every great woman is another great woman. In Mikaela’s career, that woman is her mother. They have traveled their journey together and earned their shared success.
Today, we saw how Shiffrin’s performance pressures the world’s best. All of them want to win, but now they know they must find a new limit to even have a chance. Only a fantastic ski will win if Shiffrin doesn’t make a mistake. They pushed her to improve, and now she is doing the same for them. Today it was obvious that many of the best in the world were willing to risk everything to beat Shiffrin. Because of their aggression, they paid with mistakes that took them off the podium. However, it is their efforts to be the best that make this sport so compelling.
When Shiffrin reached the finish after her second run, she collapsed to the snow in apparent exhaustion before Norway’s Ragnhild Mowinckel, 2nd, and Sweden’s Sara Hector, 3rd, came over to congratulate her and help her up.
“Oh my gosh,” Shiffrin said. “I was pushing so hard and I just hoped I ended up on the right side of all the gates. Now I’m a bit dead mentally — just so tired. But when you ski like that, it keeps your energy going, so just an incredible feeling.”
While Tuesday’s win moved Shiffrin ahead of the previous women’s mark of 82 victories held by retired American teammate Lindsey Vonn, Wednesday’s victory moved her within two of the overall record of 86 wins held by Ingemar Stenmark.
Vonn retired four years ago when injuries cut her career short, while Stenmark raced in the 1970s and 80s.
If Shiffrin wins two slaloms in Spindleruv Mlyn, Czech Republic, this weekend, she could match Stenmark on Sunday.
“Technically, it is possible,” Shiffrin said with a laugh. “We’ll see if I can put the energy into my slalom skis for two more races.
“It’s been busy, and I am in a kind of an unfortunate time of my monthly cycle, so I’m more tired right now. We just normalized talking about that,” she added.
Spindleruv was where Shiffrin made her World Cup debut as a 15-year-old prodigy nearly 12 years ago.
“It’s a special place for me,” she said. “So I’m really looking forward to going.”
Former World Cup giant slalom champion Marta Bassino was on track for the podium before she lost control a few gates from the finish and plowed through a gate, which hit her hard in the shins.
It was Shiffrin’s 10th win of the season and her 19th career victory in giant slalom, moving her within one of Vreni Schneider’s record of 20 in the discipline.
Shiffrin said she had a late night after her record-breaking day.
“But it was a really nice evening,” she said. “It was so nice to see messages from people and so much support and so much excitement about the race. I was definitely looking a lot at all of that and then trying to go to bed and have a good night’s sleep. And I was awake at midnight. I was awake at 3. Then I was awake at 5. I was hungry all night. I was like, ‘Oh my gosh, I’m a mess.’”
Still, Shiffrin managed to pull herself together to bring out her best skiing.
“After yesterday, I was just so tired, which made today pretty hard,” she said. “And I felt nervous because when I am skiing tired, I make mistakes. And I didn’t want to make a mistake today.
“In the first run, I thought, ‘Either I am going out at the fourth gate or it’s going to be a really good run.’ It ended up being a really good run. The second run, I was just trying to trust my skiing and keep pushing, no matter what I felt.”
Kranplatz has also been an excellent experience for USA’s Nina O’Brien. She likes the snow and the slope. Tuesday, she finished in 18th place. However, Wednesday was better. After skiing beautifully on the first run and ending the morning in 14th place, she used elite second-run skiing to finish the day 10th. Today is the second-best World Cup GS result of her career and now it can be said she is back.
“I feel like I was finding some confidence in training, letting myself push more and trust myself,” said O’Brien. “I’m relieved and proud of myself for doing that today and yesterday.”
Her teammate Paula Moltzan continues to learn how to be an elite GS skier. She made significant mistakes today and was still able to finish the day in seventh. If she maintains her determination, it appears it is only a matter of time before she stands on a World Cup GS podium.
When asked about her teammate, Shiffrin, Moltzan said “It’s pretty social. She’s obviously continuously breaking records. She’s so amazing. It’s just an honor to be here at this time of her life right now.”
The sixteen-year-old Lara Colturi, skiing for Albania, was the first to ski the second run. On a clean course, the junior performed like a seasoned professional. She skied to be fast, not to protect a result. Colturi was able to move up the leaderboard seven positions and finish 17th. However, the last woman to qualify in the morning, Slovenian Neja Dvornik, bib 50, was the skier who took the early lead and was able to hold it for the following 11 racers. Dvornik used the second-fastest final run to move up 15 places and finish the day a career-best 12th.
Canadian Valerie Grenier lost time on the pitch during her first run and then again on the second. However, she skied well and crossed only behind the rising Dvornik. Grenier rose six positions in the afternoon and finished the day 14th.
Analysis of the fastest three, qualified North Americans and race results
Results from Wednesday, January 25th Kronplatz GS
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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