Mikaela Shiffrin notches 92nd World Cup win, 22nd giant slalom victory
Mikaela Shiffrin is starting this season even better than the last.
The 28-year-old American won a women's World Cup giant slalom race in Lienz, Austria, on Thursday. It was her 92nd World Cup victory, as she continues to extend the record for most wins in history. She now has 22 career giant slalom wins.
Shiffrin began her day with a big first-run lead despite the course's firm snow surface, which can make for a more difficult race. Trumping the tough conditions, she had an advantage of 0.63 seconds heading into the final run. Her opening run allowed her to hold onto the win even after recording the 17th-best time in her second showing.
“When I came through the finish, I didn’t expect it would be this much ahead, so I’m really happy with that," Shiffrin said on the broadcast after her first run. "I’m happy with the skiing, I felt very strong, but I think, maybe, it’s one of those runs, it doesn’t happen that often."
She beat Federica Brignone of Italy by 0.38 seconds. Sweden's Olympic giant slalom champion, Sara Hector, trailed Shiffrin by 0.45.
THERE SHE GOATS. 🐐@MikaelaShiffrin claims her 92nd World Cup win and 22nd giant slalom victory.@usskiteam | #fisalpine pic.twitter.com/ZwtJFIUXUE
— NBC Olympics & Paralympics (@NBCOlympics) December 28, 2023
Shiffrin sacrificed some speed during her final run to avoid any costly mistakes.
“I was like, 'Now I want to win it but I also really don’t want to mess it up, that would be so disappointing.' So, it was a little back and forth in my thoughts,” Shiffrin said “Every GS race, I feel more comfortable and I think I have a really good focus with my skiing that can be simple. I can hopefully repeat it more and more races, so I’m super happy with the progress.”
She dominated women's giant slalom last season by winning seven of the 10 events. But Shiffrin said she feels even better now than she did during last December's final race at Semmering, a different Austrian resort.
“My results in GS this year so far have been better by far from what my GS results were last year at this time. When you miss a win for so long in the season, it’s easy to be like: I’m doing things wrong,” Shiffrin said. “But the season is a marathon, not a sprint.”
Last season's "marathon" saw Shiffrin surpass Lindsey Vonn for most World Cup wins by a woman. Shiffrin went on to pass Ingemar Stenmark for most wins by any skier, any gender.
The women's races in Austria continue with slalom Friday.
