Mikaela Shiffrin’s Winter Olympics are not off to the start she would have hoped.
The 26-year-old American star and defending giant slalom gold medalist crashed out on the upper portion of her first run attempt Monday morning, eliminating her from medal contention.
Shiffrin, testing the limits of the slick “Ice River” technical course at the Yanqing Alpine Skiing Center, lost her edge on a left-hand turn early in the run and went down, missing several gates. She skied out for just the third time in the last four years in international competition, including for the first time in 30 GS races. She appeared to avoid injury and skied down the remainder of the course unassisted.
The giant slalom was a crucial cog in Shiffrin’s plans for a historic multi-event performance in Beijing. The two-time Olympic gold medalist has stated a desire to compete in all five individual women’s events with hopes of adding to her mounting legacy as one of Alpine skiing’s greatest-ever champions. Her next opportunity for a medal comes Wednesday morning in Beijing (Tuesday evening in the U.S.) with the women’s slalom event. Shiffrin is regarded as the best slalom skier of all time, owning more world cup victories than any slalom skier ever. She won gold in the event at the Sochi 2014 Olympics as an 18-year-old.
Earlier in the week, Shiffrin expressed concern about the Yanqing venue due to its steep grade, swirling winds and 100% manmade snow. “There’s going to be a huge element of just crossing your fingers in these Games,” Shiffrin said. “It’s some of the steepest terrain I’ve ever experienced in my life.”
Sara Hector of Sweden leads the competition after 20 skiers.
This story will be updated further.
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