Shiffrin Ends Olympic Medal Drought With Dominant Slalom Victory

Mikaela Shiffrin won the women's slalom at the Milano Cortina Winter Olympics on Wednesday, finishing with a combined time of 1:39.10 and defeating Switzerland's Camille Rast by 1.50 seconds. The victory marks her third Olympic gold medal, the most ever won by an American alpine skier, and ends a wait for Olympic success that stretched back to the 2018 Pyeongchang Games.

Shiffrin's performance in the two-run event was marked by aggressive skiing rather than cautious management of her lead. She entered the second run with a 1.05-second advantage—a substantial margin in Olympic slalom racing—but extended that lead through powerful, efficient movements in the middle sections of the course. Her second run was the second-fastest of the final leg, allowing her to cross the finish line with a comfortable margin over her competitors.

Background

Shiffrin arrived at the Milano Cortina Games carrying the weight of Olympic disappointment. She washed out in the giant slalom four days earlier, finishing 11th and missing the podium in a discipline where she once dominated. That result came after a difficult stretch that included a harrowing crash during a World Cup race in Killington, Vermont, in late 2024 that left her with a punctured abdomen and shaken confidence.

The American skier has been the most dominant technical skier of her generation, winning 22 World Cup giant slalom races—a record—and consistently performing at the highest levels of international competition. Yet the Olympics had proven elusive in recent years. Her last Olympic medal came eight years ago in Pyeongchang, where she won gold in the giant slalom. Before Wednesday's victory, only three Americans had ever won two Olympic gold medals in alpine skiing: Shiffrin herself, Ted Ligety, and Andrea Mead Lawrence.

Shiffrin's path to this slalom race was complicated by her recovery from injury and a shift in her focus. She continues to dominate the World Cup slalom circuit, having clinched her ninth World Cup slalom series title with two races remaining in the season. However, her giant slalom performances have been inconsistent as she works to rebuild the speed that once came naturally.

Key Details

Shiffrin's winning time of 1:39.10 came from two strong runs down the course. In the first run, she posted the fastest time, establishing a commanding lead before the second leg. That advantage gave her room to ski with aggression rather than caution in the final run.

"I came here for the skiing. I wanted to feel these two runs that I felt today—that it was on the limit, that it wasn't easy, but I took the risk even when it felt like there was something to lose. But in the end there was everything to earn." – Mikaela Shiffrin

Rast's silver medal came after an impressive second run. Sitting fourth after the first leg, the Swiss skier attacked the course in her final run, posting a time of 52.42 seconds that proved fast enough to move into second place and secure a medal. Sweden's Anna Swenn Larsson rounded out the podium in third place, 1.71 seconds behind Shiffrin.

The American Effort

Another American competitor made headlines with a strong second run. Paula Moltzan, competing for the United States, finished eighth overall but posted the fastest second run of the entire race with a time of 51.39 seconds. Moltzan started the second run in 28th place but surged 20 positions up the leaderboard with her powerful final leg. She credited the course setup, which featured more turns and slower speeds that played to her strengths.

What This Means

Shiffrin's victory represents a significant moment in her Olympic career and in American alpine skiing history. The third gold medal places her alone atop the list of American alpine skiers with the most Olympic gold medals. It also signals that she is moving in the right direction after a difficult period marked by injury and inconsistent results.

The slalom victory comes after Shiffrin's disappointing 11th-place finish in the giant slalom, where she was only 0.3 seconds away from a medal. That narrow margin suggested she was close to returning to medal-winning form, and Wednesday's dominant performance confirmed that assessment. She will now head into the remainder of the season with renewed confidence in her ability to compete at the highest levels of international competition.

For the American ski team, Shiffrin's gold medal adds to the nation's medal count at the Games and reinforces her status as one of the greatest technical skiers in the sport's history. Her ability to win under pressure, after the struggles of recent years, demonstrates the mental toughness that has defined her career.