Mikaela Shiffrin: The Greatest Female Alpine Skier Ever?
On the slopes of Sljeme, Mikaela Shiffrin showed she might be the greatest female skier in the slalom discipline. But the greatest female skier ever?
Sljeme, about twenty kilometers away from Zagreb, Croatia, was the most-recent stop in this year's World Cup. The native of Vail, Colorado was simply too much for the rest of the field. It was her second consecutive victory in the discipline (after finishing first in Kühtai, Austria before New Year). It was also her third first-place finish, which put her back in second place in the overall standing. The American was awarded the ice crown, in honor of Janica Kostelić. The retired Croatian skier was the first alpine skier, male or female, to win four medals in one Olympics. She was also the only female skier to win four Olympic gold medals.
Shiffrin wants to break Kostelić's record. She also likes to be the first skier to win all five disciplines in one Olympics. It seems out of reach, but the American is only 19 years of age.
This used to be be our playground
Alpine skiing has been dominated by European skiers, Austrians in particular. Annemarie Moser-Pröll holds the record for the most World Cup win, but Lindsey Vonn is so close of matching it.
The American skiers made their mark in alpine skiing as early as the 1980s, but no one was as dominant as Vonn. It was no surprise that she attracted a lot of media attention. Shiffrin may turn out to be better, though. She is the reigning Olympic and world champion in slalom. She is also the winner of the season title in the slalom discipline during the last two years. No one was surprised when she announced that she would try the other disciplines. The 2018 Winter Olympics is four years away.
She got off with a good start, winning the giant slalom race in Sölden, Austria last October. This was the opening of this season's World Cup. But she didn't fare well in the first three races in the slalom discipline. She may not have made it to the podium, but she managed to finish first in the last two races. The world championship will be held in Beaver Creek next month, which is not far from where Shiffrin lives. She is the overwhelming favorite in the slalom and she has a good chance of winning the gold in the giant slalom. There's no doubt that she's turning out to be a fine technical skier. But a fast skier? Vonn holds the distinction at the moment.
Vonn is one of the few active skiers who finish first in all disciplines in the World Cup. Slovenia's Tina Maze is the other one, the current leader in the overal standing. Unless she crashes and get injured, many expect her to win her second overall title. This is what Schiffrin wants. It remains to be seen if she can do well in downhill and the Super-G. Four years is a long time.
