CORTINA D’AMPEZZO, Italy (AP) — Mikaela Shiffrin’s turbulent, 12-year Olympic journey came full circle Wednesday when she won the slalom by a massive 1.50 seconds to break her long medal drought at the Winter Games.
Shiffrin put in two dominant runs in gorgeous conditions amid the jagged peaks of the Dolomites to show, again, why she is regarded by many as the greatest Alpine skier of all time.
WATCH: American Mikaela Shiffrin makes history as most successful female World Cup skier
It was the third-largest margin of victory in a women’s Olympic slalom, the event she won as a fresh-faced teenager in Sochi in 2014 to underline her status as a skiing star.
Twelve years later, she delivered again in her favorite race and the emotions came out in the finish area after being embraced by world champion Camille Rast of Switzerland, who took silver, and bronze-medalist Anna Swenn Larsson of Sweden.
The 30-year-old Shiffrin pumped her fists to the crowd and then was fighting back tears as she approached her mom and coach, Eileen, for a long hug on the sidelines.
Gold medallist Mikaela Shiffrin of United States celebrates on the podium during the Women’s Slalom victory ceremony at Tofane Alpine Skiing Centre in Belluno, Italy, on Feb. 18, 2026. Photo by Leonhard Foeger/ Reuters
Shiffrin said it was “really hard to understand and process” her victory.
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“Maybe,” she added, “just today, I realized what happened in Sochi. It’s crazy.”
For Shiffrin, maybe it also was a release of all the pressure after failing to win an Olympic medal since adding gold and silver to her collection in Pyeongchang in 2018.
Mikaela Shiffrin of the United States during the women’s slalom during the Milano Cortina 2026 Olympic Winter Games at Tofane Alpine Skiing Centre on Feb. 18, 2026. Photo by Michael Madrid-Imagn Images
A nightmarish 0-for-6 performance in Beijing was followed in Cortina d’Ampezzo this year with an 11th place in the giant slalom and a fourth-place finish with Breezy Johnson in the team combined, in which Shiffrin placed 15th in the slalom portion.
That’s all in the past.
Shiffrin has now won three golds and a silver at the Olympics to add to her record total on World Cup wins — it’s 108 and counting, including 71 in slalom.
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