Mikaela Shiffrin Crashes Out Of Her Final Solo Event At The Beijing Winter Games After Promising Start

Topline

Mikaela Shiffrin on Thursday failed to finish the second leg of the alpine combined skiing event at the 2022 Beijing Olympics—her final solo event at the Games—a result that caps off a torrid run for the star U.S. skier who has unexpectedly failed to capture a medal.

Key Facts

After putting up a promising performance in the downhill leg of the event—where she ended in fifth and in contention for a medal—Shiffrin missed a gate in the slalom portion and ended up landing on her hip. 

Thursday’s mishap was similar to what happened last week when she failed to complete her two best events. the giant slalom and slalom, where she was a strong contender for the gold medal.

The result also means that the three-time Olympic medal winner will leave Beijing with no individual medals.

The combined event was won by Michelle Gisin of Switzerland, who successfully defended the gold she had won at the Pyeongchang Olympics in 2018.

What To Watch For

Shiffrin’s last chance of winning a medal at the Beijing Games will come on Saturday in the alpine skiing team event. If the American manages to win a gold medal in the event, she would become only the second female ski racer to win golds at three consecutive Olympic games.

Key Background

Shiffrin, who has won two Olympic gold medals, endured a difficult start to her Olympic campaign last week after she slid off track and was disqualified in both the women’s slalom and giant slalom events. Her failure to finish the slalom events have been surprising as she has been widely lauded by other skiers for her strong technique, consistency, metronomic precision and ability to complete courses. Shiffrin took part in two other alpine skiing events at the Beijing Olympics super-G and the downhill where she managed to finish in ninth and 18th place respectively.

Tangent

Despite her disappointing run at the Beijing Olympics, the 26-year-old is widely considered one of the best alpine skiers in the world and has the records to back it up. Besides her two Olympic golds and one silver medal, she won six world championship gold medals, three World Cup overall titles and 73 career race wins—behind only Ingemar Stenmark’s 86 and Lindsey Vonn’s 82.

Further Reading

Shiffrin again misses gate at Olympics; no individual medals (Associated Press)

Mikaela Shiffrin fails to finish the slalom portion of the combined event. (New York Times)