Mikayla Shiffrin JOSEPH PREZIOSO/AFP via Getty Images
American alpine skier Mikaela Shiffrin was stretchered off the course following a crash while competing in the annual Alpine Skiing FIS World Cup 2024/25.
Shiffrin, 29, is already the most successful alpine skier of all time. She would have celebrated her 100th World Cup victory had she not crashed out of the women’s giant slalom on her second run during the Stifel Killington Cup held in Killington, Vermont, on Saturday, November 30.
Shiffrin had taken a 0.32-second lead during her first run on the slalom, but crashed into the security fence on the side of the slope during her second attempt. She was taken off the slope by sled, according to the official Olympics website, and was met with polite applause from the crowd.
U.S. Ski & Snowboard shared updates on the two-time Olympic gold medalist’s condition via X following the crash, saying that her condition was being “evaluated.”
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“Mikaela took the sled down and is currently being evaluated. More info to come, but take solace in the fact that she asked about her splits,” US Ski and Snowboard said in a statement via X.
Mikayla Shiffrin Joseph Prezioso / AFP) (Photo by JOSEPH PREZIOSO/AFP via Getty Images
Instead, Olympic champion Sara Hector of Sweden took home the first place title in the 2024/25 World Cup with a combined winning time of 1:53.08. Zrinka Ljutic of Croatia took home second place, while Camille Rest of Switzerland took third.
“It’s so sad of course for Mikaela, a crash like that after she was skiing so well. It breaks my heart,” Hector said on the broadcast after Shiffrin’s crash, per ESPN.
“The course and conditions are really spectacular,” Shiffrin had said, per Reuters, after finishing her first run ahead of Hector. ”It’s pretty straightforward and I think there may be some spots on the hill with a few stones that are kind of surfacing as people ski.”
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She continued, “Some of the skiers coming down, they look fine, and then their ski just slips out. And the surface is actually really great so I don’t think it’s an issue of not enough grip so much as you hit a stone and you lose your edge.”
If she is uninjured, Shiffrin will have another chance at her 100th win during the slalom event on Sunday, December 1. Earlier this year, she suffered a knee injury as a result of a high-speed crash during the World Cup downhill in Cortina d’Ampezzo, Italy.
Shiffrin has already dealt with another big fall this year — just not her own. In July, Shiffrin’s fiancé, Aleksander Aamodt Kilde, who is also a skier, was sent to the hospital after a ski crash.
“Out of the many lessons I learn from you, one of the greatest is — Smile,” Shiffrin wrote via Instagram alongside a sweet photo of her and Kilde, 32, cuddled up together in a hospital bed. “Even through the s–t. ❤️🥹🥴I love you @akilde. Forward ❤️.”