⛷️ Mikaela Shiffrin, fresh off her most dominant performance in almost two years, is aiming for another World Cup slalom victory this Sunday in Gurgl, Austria. The race will be broadcast live on Peacock.
Key Highlights:
* Recent Dominance: Shiffrin won the first slalom of the season last Saturday by a commanding 1.66 seconds—her largest margin since December 2023.
* Record Extended: This victory pushed her records to 65 career World Cup slalom wins and 102 Alpine World Cup victories overall.
* The Season: The World Cup season runs from October to March, with an Olympic break in February.
* 2024-25 Review: Last season, Shiffrin reached 100 World Cup victories (a first for an Alpine skier) but missed two months after tearing oblique muscles in a crash on November 30th.
* Current Focus: This season, she is concentrating on her core events: slalom and giant slalom. She may also race some super-Gs and plans to compete in the new Olympic team combined event.
Rival and Men’s Race
* Petra Vlhova (Slovakia): Shiffrin’s main rival, the 2022 Olympic slalom champion, is currently sidelined after tearing her right knee in January 2024 and undergoing surgery. While she recently returned to skiing and has not ruled out the Olympics, her competition return date is unknown.
* Men’s Race Milestone: In Saturday’s men’s slalom, Lucas Pinheiro Braathen made history by becoming the first person representing Brazil to win a World Cup event in any Winter Olympic sport.
* Pinheiro Braathen’s Background: He previously raced for Norway, winning five World Cup races before a brief retirement in October 2023 due to a conflict with the Norwegian ski federation over marketing rights. He ended his retirement a year ago, switching to represent Brazil (his mother is Brazilian).
Note: No South American nation has ever won a Winter Olympic medal.