Mikaela Shiffrin ended an eight-year Olympic drought by winning gold in the women’s slalom at the 2026 Milan-Cortina Winter Games on Wednesday. She delivered a near-flawless performance that took the top of her podium once again as the slalom queen.
The American clocked a winning time of 1:39.10 after two runs to secure her first individual title since Sochi 2014. Shiffrin’s technique was blistering on the steep, technical on the Tofane course. She navigated the gates with precision and aggressive speed.
She finished ahead of Switzerland’s Camille Rast and Sweden’s Anna Swenn Larsson, who claimed the silver and bronze medals, respectively. The 30-year-old’s victory reaffirmed her status quo as a giant of the game and capped a remarkable comeback.
With this win, Shiffrin won her third Olympic gold medal, and her first two came at the 2014 Sochi and 2018 PyeongChang Games, respectively. Along with this, she also won a silver medal in the 2018 Games in the combined team event.
Before her staunch run in the slalom event, she competed in the giant slalom, where she fell short of even earning a podium finish. Starting the second run of the event, she was just 0.56 seconds away from third place; however, after facing a delay in the middle part of the course, she ended up in 11th place, securing a time of 1:10.17 and a combined time of 2:14.42.
What Did Mikaela Shiffrin Say After Her Long-Awaited Olympic Gold Medal Win?
Following the notable performance in the slalom event, Mikaela Shiffrin burst into tears. Speaking to the reporters in the post-run interview, she said that she has been focused every single day to gain the victory. Revealing the conversations she had with her family and her psychologist, she said:
“I wanted to be free, I wanted to unleash. It’s not easy to do that, but I’ve been so focused every single day. Through a lot of discussions with my psychologist and my mom and my team, everything we said was that, despite pressure or nerves, I want to feel this skiing,” said Mikaela Shiffrin.
She added:
“In the end, today, showing up, that was the thing I wanted most. More than the medal. Now, to also get to have a medal is unbelievable.”
Does Mikaela Shiffrin Have More Events at the Winter Olympics 2026?
No, Mikaela Shiffrin’s run at the 2026 Winter Olympics came to an end after the slalom event Wednesday. Her first event of the Games was the women’s team combined event, where she and Breezy Johnson narrowly missed the podium, finishing fourth.
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