MERIBEL,FRANCE,16.FEB.23 – Mikaela Shiffrin. Photo: GEPA pictures

MERIBEL, France — Thursday February 16th, American skier Mikaela Shiffrin posted the fastest time in the opening run of the world championship giant slalom.

As expected both the weather and race surface were perfect. Although the course went in and out of direct sunlight the 114 women attacked the Méribel Roc de Fer GS.

The crowd favorite France’s, 2021-22 World Cup GS champion, Tessa Worley, was first to ski. Notably, she delivered her best first run of the season, finishing the opening run second fastest, (+0.12), behind the leading American.

Shiffrin showed the exceptional skills she used to win five GS races during the 2022-23 World Cup season. She made beautifully balanced transitions, powerfully shifting her pressure from foot to foot. Her precision enabled her to execute her timing at a higher level than her competitors. However, she will have to ski her best again, during the second run, to become the 2023 world champion.

The American trailed Worley by 0.30 at the final split but clocked the fastest time in the final sector to earn her (-0.12) advantage.

“I felt very good with my skiing. I was not safe anywhere, I was always pushing,” Shiffrin said. “I thought that I would be slower down here on this pitch. So I was really trying to push here.”

Shiffrin was the 2018 Olympic champion and won five of the last six giant slaloms on the World Cup circuit.

“My skiing feels good. I know how to ski GS, so just try to trust that,” Shiffrin said.

Besides Worley only six other women were within a second of the leader. The third fastest was Italy’s Federica Brignone (+0.31). The other five women within a second were over a half second behind.

Other North Americans

American Paula Moltzan, who broke her hand two days prior while securing the gold medal in the mixed team parallel, nearly crashed and did not finish. After two fast middle sections, Canadian star Valérie Grenier made a big mistake and finished (+3.16) behind Shiffrin. Nonetheless, Grenier finished the morning 30th and will be the first competitior to ski the second run.

The other three North Americans are USA’s Nina O’Brien in 21st (+2.16), Canadian Brit Richardson in 22nd (+2.18) and USA’s Katie Hensien in 29th (+3.08). Fortunately, all three women will have a preferred start positions for the final run. However, it is important to remember that after the fastest thirty complete their runs, the racers who finished 31 through 60 will also be allowed to complete their race.

Top 33 first-run results and analysis of the fastest three and North Americans

Analysis of the fastest three and North Americans

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

This is a developing story, stay tuned for updates.