Mikaela Shiffrin continues her dominant streak in the slalom events of the Olympic season, securing a commanding victory in each race. The American ski star clinched her 105th World Cup win in Courcheval, France, with a remarkable performance, finishing 1.55 seconds ahead of Camille Rast from Switzerland and 1.71 seconds ahead of Emma Aicher from Germany.
With this win, Shiffrin has triumphed in the first four slalom races of the season, extending her winning streak to five, including the last race of the previous season. She leads the overall standings with 558 points, followed by Alice Robinson (394), Camille Rast (343), and Emma Aicher (319). Laurence St-Germain from St.-Ferreol-les-Neiges, Quebec, secured the top Canadian position by finishing 13th, 3.97 seconds behind Shiffrin. Amelia Smart from Invermere, British Columbia, placed 23rd among the 24 finishers.
Shiffrin’s dominance is evident in her consistent victory margins this season, all exceeding a full second, with three of them surpassing 1.5 seconds. Her average margin of victory stands at 1.5025 seconds. Reflecting on her performance, Shiffrin mentioned, “I’m just pushing. I’m not asking questions. Sometimes you just got to take it and roll with it. Lock in this feeling.”
In the race, several top contenders faced challenges, with Lena Duerr from Germany going off course in her second run and Lara Colturi, an Italian skier representing Albania, straddling a gate in her opening run, ending her podium streak in slalom events.
Despite a mishap at the end of her first run where Wendy Holdener landed on her back after hitting a hole in the finish area, she managed to finish in seventh place. Defending World Cup slalom champion Zrinka Ljutic and Olympic silver medalist Katharina Liensberger also faced setbacks, failing to finish the race.
Shiffrin secured her 68th World Cup slalom win and is gearing up for the Women’s alpine skiing at the upcoming Olympics in Cortina d’Ampezzo, Italy. Lindsey Vonn’s record of 12 World Cup victories in Cortina d’Ampezzo is a notable achievement, and Shiffrin aims to continue her success in the upcoming event.