- Shiffrin wins Spindleruv Mlyn slalom for ninth win in 14 races
- US star can equal Stenmark’s all-time mark of 86 wins Sunday
Mikaela Shiffrin celebrated with a shoulder wiggle and a vibrant smile Saturday after dominating a slalom and shifting inside one victory of the 34-year-old World Cup document of 86 wins.
The American confirmed no indicators of strain, a day earlier than one other slalom wherein she may match the most effective mark set by Swedish nice Ingemar Stenmark within the Nineteen Eighties.
“I don’t really feel quite a lot of strain to get this document. Now, I'm so shut that it’s like simply take a breath and benefit from the moments we're in now,” Shiffrin mentioned.
She had shared the ladies’s document of 82 wins with former teammate Lindsey Vonn earlier than triumphing at back-to-back slaloms in Italy this week and including profession win 85 on Saturday.
“I’m all the time making an attempt to consider the whole lot else besides these numbers, as a result of they only make me nervous. And I don’t have a purpose to be nervous if I obtain 86 or 87,” Shiffrin mentioned. “However, for positive, if all people asks, then I really feel strain to do it after which I don’t benefit from the races as a lot.”
Shiffrin definitely loved the race Saturday, which marked her third win inside 5 days.
“As we speak, it was simply an incredible day. From the second I wakened, I felt good and able to go. And I used to be so proud of how I skied,” mentioned the American, including she needed to overcome indicators of fatigue.
“Typically once you’re drained, it takes away the nerves since you simply don’t have the power to be nervous,” she mentioned. “Possibly it’s a bonus for me at this time, however I’m barely making it via tomorrow earlier than I would like a few days off.”
The American held a lead of 0.29 seconds after the opening run, however misplaced one-tenth of the benefit after going huge on just a few turns early within the second earlier than rushing up and posting the quickest run time once more, this time shared with Croatian skier Leona Popovic, to beat Germany’s Lena Dürr by 0.60 seconds.
Shortly after Shiffrin completed the race, third-place Wendy Holdener of Switzerland and runner-up Dürr came to visit to hug her.
“I knew it could take some danger and there’s an opportunity that I don’t end in any respect, however I've to do my finest turns to have an opportunity as a result of these ladies are so sturdy,” Shiffrin mentioned.
Holdener was 1.31 behind in third, adopted by Olympic slalom champion Petra Vlhová of Slovakia in fourth and Shiffrin’s American teammate Paula Moltzan in fifth.
The race happened on the resort close to the Czech-Polish border the place she had her World Cup debut as a 15-year-old virtually 12 years in the past. Shiffrin additionally gained when the venue final hosted a World Cup race, in 2019.
“Wow, I are you able to hear you all so loud. Thanks for cheering, it’s superb to race for this crowd,” she mentioned to the spectators throughout a post-race interview.
Shiffrin laid the muse for her victory with a clear opening run, wherein she had a quick begin and already led her rivals by no less than 1 / 4 of a second on the first intermediate time.
Joyful Dance 💃
No.85 for @MikaelaShiffrin and fifth @PaulaMoltzan‼️#StifelUSAlpineTeampic.twitter.com/iORURdYazy
She additionally gained time on most racers in a tough passage midway via her run, the place the course set allowed numerous methods to cross the gates.
“You would ski it both means,” Shiffrin mentioned. “I used to be in a position to actually carry quite a lot of velocity on the tip of the course. Ultimately, I felt superb on my run.”
Shiffrin has gained 5 of the eight slaloms this season and prolonged her lead within the self-discipline standings over Holdener to 175 factors. She may wrap up the title if she leads by no less than 200 factors after Sunday’s race.
General, the American has gained 11 races this season. Solely twice in her profession has she gained extra races in a single season: 12 in 2017-18 and a document 17 in 2018-19.
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