Mikaela Shiffrin is an American alpine skier and two time Olympic gold medalist. She was selected to compete and the winter Olympics in Bejing 2022 for team USA.

Unfortunately for Mikaela, her first two races did not go well for her. In her first race, giant slalom, she skied only 11 seconds before slipping and bailing which led her to not finish.  In her second race, women’s giant slalom, she skied only five seconds before going off course and not being able to finish. After her second mishap, she sat on the hill for several minutes with her head in her lap appearing distraught.

Mikaela has been dealing with personal issues leading up to the Olympics, unfortunately, her dad passed away unexpectedly in 2020 which led her to think about retiring. Luckily Mikaela decided to compete at the Olympics. Even after her two unfortunate first races, she decided to compete in the super-G event. After her two unsuccessful races, she tweeted on Friday “I can’t express how grateful I am to have the opportunity to refocus on a new race, in the sport that I love so much. Onward.”

Super-G means super giant slalom; it combines the speed of downhill but the technical turning aspect of giant slalom. This was the third race Mikaela was scheduled to race, and after a lot of consideration, she decided to compete. Mikaela didn’t get in the top 3 but she placed 9th which many people believe is her bouncing back.

After completing her super-G run, she described her super-G performance:  “I just skied strong, and it’s a really big relief to be here now in the finish, having skied a run well.”  

Mikaela may still compete and medal in other events including downhill, Alpine combined, and mixed team parallel.