Mikaela Shiffrin matched Lindsey Vonn’s mark for most career women’s World Cup skiing victories with her 82nd career win on Sunday.
Shiffrin clinched the record-tying mark with a victory in giant slalom in Kranjska Gora, Slovenia. Entering her second and final run with 0.24-second advantage, the 27-year-old blasted through the course with remarkable precision to beat out second-place finisher Federica Brignone of Italy by a comfortable 0.77 seconds. Switzerland’s Lara Gut-Behrami rounded out the podium, 0.97 seconds behind the American.
When Shiffrin reached the finish line, she unleashed a celebratory scream to cap off her historic achievement. She later kissed her skis during the awards ceremony.
“I was so nervous this run. I have a rash on my face I was so nervous,” Shiffrin said to FIS TV after her final run. “I don’t know why, maybe a little bit was because of 82. I just really wanted to ski well. … I can’t believe it.
“It was a fight, but it was pretty amazing conditions and I got a report from the coaches that just said everything is fully attackable so you have to go for it. I’ve been in this position (before) and I’ve given it away, and today I wanted to go for it.”
Shiffrin’s career achievement comes almost a year after a difficult 2022 Beijing Olympics in which she failed to win a medal in any of her six events. The shocking disappointment cast a temporary cloud over the American’s historic career, one that she’s already dispelled just 11 months later.
In addition to tying Vonn, Shiffrin’s eighth victory of the season put her within shouting distance of Ingemar Stenmark’s overall record of 86 World Cup victories. Shiffrin will have a chance to move one step closer to the Swedish great and move ahead of Vonn’s mark Tuesday in a slalom race in Flachau, Austria.
