Mikaela Shiffrin, the most successful Alpine skier in history, arrives in Cortina d'Ampezzo for her fourth Olympics amid personal triumphs over grief and injury. The 30-year-old American plans to compete in three events, seeking to build on her past golds from 2014 and 2018. Her journey includes overcoming her father's death and a severe crash that caused PTSD.
Mikaela Shiffrin has achieved unparalleled success in Alpine skiing, securing 108 World Cup victories—nearly two dozen more than any other skier. These accomplishments stand out given the obstacles she has faced, including the sudden death of her father, Jeff, in February 2020 after a fall from the family home's roof. Devastated, Shiffrin paused racing for 10 months, with her mother, Eileen, recalling in a recent documentary: "It was a week she couldn't even get out of bed. She couldn't eat. She couldn't drink anything and lost a lot of weight. I didn't think Mikaela would ever ski again. I don't think she thought she would either."
Shiffrin's Olympic record began brightly: at 18, she won slalom gold in 2014, the youngest ever, and added giant slalom gold in 2018. However, the 2022 Beijing Games marked a low point; entering all six events, she failed to medal, a result she described as embarrassing and one she is "to this day still trying to understand." This experience, along with therapy for grief, became a "catalyst for indescribable growth," she said in a recent podcast.
A further setback came on November 30, 2024, during a giant slalom in Killington, Vermont, where a crash into a gate pierced her abdominal wall, causing severe pain and bleeding. Recovery took months, compounded by PTSD that led to hesitation in races. Yet, Shiffrin recently earned a World Cup podium in giant slalom, noting: "When I compare this season to last season... it's pretty spectacular to have my World Cup podium again."
Now in Cortina d'Ampezzo, Italy, for the 2026 Milan-Cortina Olympics, Shiffrin focuses on slalom, giant slalom, and the team combined event. The team event precedes individual races on February 15 and 18. "I've been to four different Games and they've been four wildly different experiences," she told reporters. "Being able to show up to Cortina wide-eyed and still just as excited and motivated as the first is really great." Despite fears of disappointment, she finds the atmosphere less nerve-wracking than anticipated.
