Mikaela Shiffrin on the Verge of a Record-Breaking 100th World Cup Victory
Mikaela Shiffrin, the 29-year-old American alpine skier, is just one win away from achieving a record-breaking 100th World Cup victory. The star skier is set to compete in both the giant slalom and slalom events at the Stifel Killington Cup in Vermont, which will be broadcast live in the US on NBC Sports and Peacock.
Shiffrin, who already holds the record for most World Cup wins by an alpine skier, is taking a measured approach to her chances of reaching the milestone. “It’s not impossible, but so many things have to go right,” she said after winning her 99th World Cup race in Austria last week. “I think, from the outside, it looks easy or it looks like it’s supposed to happen this way, but even today took so much energy to bring out my top skiing. So it’s not easy, and everybody’s pushing and catching up. And so I’m not taking that for granted.”
Shiffrin has already overcome a challenging start to the year, which included a high-speed crash in January that left her with sprained knee ligaments. She was forced to take a six-week break from the sport, but she’s now back on the slopes and looking to make history.
The skiing star is also set to have a home crowd cheering her on, as she went to school in Vermont. While there may be some pressure to perform in front of a local audience, Shiffrin is trying to focus on her skiing. “I guess there’s a bit of pressure around it, but I’ll try to ignore that,” she said. “If it happens, it’s wonderful; if it doesn’t happen, nothing to cry about in the grand scheme. But I hope to have a really good performance in front of the home crowd.”
