Mikaela Shiffrin Atomic Media Day Photo: GEPA

A couple of weeks before the World Cup opener in Sölden, Atomic invites their top skiers to their annual media day at their headquarters in Altenmarkt, Austria. This year, Ski Racing Media caught up with the most decorated active American skier and reigning overall World Cup champion, Mikaela Shiffrin.

SRM: Mikaela, you are about to embark on your thirteenth World Cup season. What’s new this year?

Shiffrin: Nothing too new, to be honest. It’s kind of more of the same thing. Here we are with Atomic media day, which kicks off the season every year. I’m excited. I just arrived in Europe yesterday and am excited to get things rolling with the final preparation and start racing. Not too long now.

SRM: Can you tell us about the new additions to your team?

Shiffrin: Yes, we have a new assistant coach, Mark Mitter, and my strength and conditioning coach, Bob Poehling. I have joined the rest of the women on the US Ski Team working with Bob. He primarily works in Park City, but he will travel to some races and remotely writes all my programs. (Working with Bob) has been very positive. I feel like I’m strong and fit. My summer camps have been good from the skiing, physical and strength perspectives. I am in a good place. Everything seems to be going in a positive direction.

SRM: Additionally what changes have you been making to your equipment?

Shiffrin: Many things are staying quite similar. The changes are mostly centered around ski construction or slightly changing the skis’ side cuts. That’s where we made some adjustments, and most of the adjustments are geared towards, having skis that I love, that I’ve been racing on, in most of the races, having that ski and the character of that ski, work in more types of conditions. They work in almost every condition, but there are some extremes, like extreme dry snow or extreme wet soft snow, where the ski character gets handcuffed. Those are the areas where we’ve been working, but there’s really nothing to complain about concerning the skis, the boots, or the bindings.

The team I work with at Atomic provides one of the most professional and inspiring environments I know of. It is a fantastic group of people and they want to help properly develop equipment. They don’t just give you skis and say deal with it. They want to make equipment that wins any race, no matter the conditions or what is happening. Atomic is trying to make skis that are user-friendly and the most powerful. That’s a hard balance to strike. Usually, when you bring more power to the ski, it’s more difficult to handle, and that’s what we’re trying to improve.

SRM: Have you also used men’s skis?

Shiffrin: Yes, I skied with men’s skis in some Downhill races and maybe one or two Super-Gs over the years. Actually, I have skied with the men’s skis in every event at least once. But it’s not typical; in slalom, I’ve usually geared more towards the women’s length skis, and with GS, we have something that is in between. There’s a stability factor that the men’s length of ski provides; it feels so amazing to ski on, but it also limits how quickly you can move, and it’s more tiring by the end of the track. So, you have to kind of balance the positives and the negatives.

SRM: You’ve been able to spend some time with your boyfriend, Aleksander Aamodt Kilde. Did you also train together?

Shiffrin: We traveled together quite a bit this summer, spent a little time in Norway, and then he came to the US. We often train together at the gym. In Chile, we overlapped one week and trained some Super-G and a couple of GS sessions together. It’s incredible to train with him because he has a great mentality, focus, and, generally, a positive philosophy about skiing, moving forward and improving everything.

His skiing is inspiring to watch, but he’s also inspiring to talk to about skiing. I have loved seeing how he works with his teammates and as an individual. It was quite a cool experience to witness and even be part of. Training next to him or in the same course – it’s always pretty special. It is also cool because I know many people who don’t necessarily like working together if they are in a relationship. They don’t work together, or don’t want to work together. It has been very exciting to work with him, not just be around him during our off time. Because we don’t have much off time. If we could only spend time together when we’re off, we would never see each other. We can work together well, and that’s amazing.

SRM: In the winter, we learned today that Aleksander is based in Innsbruck, Austria. Do you plan on joining him?

Shiffrin: When we’re traveling in Europe, I don’t have a home base. It has happened once, just before the Olympics, I could go for two days to Innsbruck to see Aleks, but other than that, it’s not easy. Usually, we’re off somewhere training where the conditions seem good. Also, of course, we have races every single weekend.

With slalom in the schedule, there’s no time between races when I can go someplace for three or five days. When I have time between races, for example, a speed block in Cortina or wherever, and then I have seven days before the next race, but then the next race is a slalom. So, hey, it’s time to ski some GS and slalom. It’s a continuous process. If I get time off during the winter, it’s one or two days, rarely four days. I live in the car and wherever we’re training.

Otherwise, during the off-season, I can also spend some time at home in Colorado with my family. Additionally, I travel to see Aleks and his family and he travels to see us. So, if I’m skiing, it makes sense to keep it that way, then in the off-season, we can see our families.

SRM: Do you ever get homesick, or are you more homesick now than earlier in your career, or the opposite?

Shiffrin: I get homesick and it’s always the same. Right now, I feel okay. I just left yesterday. It hasn’t quite hit me that I will probably not be going home until March.  That’s not something that anybody else experiences, just some of the Americans and Canadians. But even many of the North Americans will make a point to go home, maybe over Christmas or whenever it fits their schedule. Over the years, I’ve just decided that when it’s time to race, we race, and then I’ll be home in the spring. That can get heavy sometimes. But it has worked well for the last few years. I won’t be able to ski race forever, so I want to take advantage of it now.

SRM: Do you carry something with you that makes you feel a bit more at home?

Shiffrin: Actually, yes, I have a blanket that is from Manuela Mölgg. We have stayed at the Mölggs’ residence (in Krönplatz, Italy) a couple of times over the years. They gave me the blanket as a Christmas gift. It is this soft white blanket, the softest blanket I’ve ever felt, and I’ve been traveling with that for years. That, and then a pillow I like to travel with; it’s not a unique pillow, just a comfortable pillow. I also have a pillowcase I travel with because it’s better for my hair.

SRM: The World Cup season is about to start. Are there particular races that are special to you?

Shiffrin: Sölden is the first race. It is always important to me. In Sölden and Levi, it’s important to start strongly; they set the tone for the season. The other race that’s pretty important to me is Killington for sentimental reasons. It’s kind of home, and so much of my family can go and watch, as well as some of my best friends from high school. That’s also a pretty key race. Otherwise, no other race sits above or higher than anything else.

Ski Racing Media thanks Mikaela for taking the time to give us a glimpse into her world. Sölden is right around the corner, October 22, and the defending champion will intend to set the tone for the season.