American star Mikaela Shiffrin wins women’s gold

Mikaela Shiffrinthe American ski star who is also the most decorated athlete of all time in her sport, broke her medal drought in the 2026 Olympic Games on Wednesday, taking home gold in the women’s slalom.

The 30-year-old was stunned and visibly excited by her victory after completing a second run without problems in the slalom, which is her best test. She finished with a combined time of 1:39.10, beating Switzerland’s Camille Rast, who took second place after two races, by a considerable 1.5 seconds. Anna Swenn Larsson of Sweden came in third place.

Shiffrin had quickly taken the lead in the event, finishing her first slalom race with a time of 47.13 seconds and gaining an advantage over Rast, Larsson, Germany’s Lena Duerr and other competitors.

Before this last competition, Shiffrin, the biggest winner in the history of the World Cup circuit and several-time Olympian, had failed to reach the podium in eight consecutive Olympic events. The last time she took home a medal was during the 2018 Winter Games in PyeongChang, when she won gold and silver.

Shiffrin won her first gold medal in the slalom event during the 2014 Games in Sochi. At just 18 years old, it was also his Olympic debut.

Shiffrin’s medal drought had persisted this year even as she competed in the women’s giant slalom event on Sunday. Despite being one of the favorites to win, she finished the race in 11th place, with a series of clean races that were not fast enough to make her a serious challenger for the top spots.

Italy’s Frederica Brigone won gold in that event, achieving her fifth overall medal and her second gold since the Milan Cortina Games began. Shiffrin praised her performance after Brigone crossed the finish line.

“That was the biggest GS ski show we’ve had in a long time,” Shiffin said. “And to do it, you know, at the Olympics, where people really have their eyes on the sport. Frederica skied amazing. It was great to see.”

Last week, Shiffrin finished 15th in the slalom portion of the women’s ski team’s combined race. She and fellow American ski champion Breezy Johnson placed fourth overall in the event.

In 2024, Shiffrin crashed after losing control while on the course for the 2026 Milano Cortina Olympics. Then last year, she said she was dealing with post-traumatic stress disorder from another accident, during which she suffered a puncture wound and severe trauma to her oblique muscles.