Mikaela Shiffrin has hinted that she may not start in the remaining competitions of the alpine skiing program at the Beijing 2022 Olympics.
The American did not finish the second consecutive start of the Games after a mistake earlier today and was eliminated in the first run of the slalom. Two days ago, the American made a mistake in the same place and did not finish the first run of the giant slalom, where she defended her Olympic title from PyeongChang 2018.
After the failure in the slalom, Mikaela Shiffrin could not hold back her tears and expressed hesitation about whether to drive in the remaining competitions of the Olympics.
“Yes, I mean – no”, said the American in response to a question whether she will continue to compete in this Olympics. “I was trying to look back and think about the last days and what I’ve been trying to do, what I’ve been doing with my skiing that would suggest that on the fifth gate I would push myself a little bit too hard to actually be able to stay in the course. [But] my skiing has been really solid. My entire career has taught me to trust in my skiing if it’s good skiing, and that’s all that I have to rely on these race days”, added she.
“And when the pressure is high — and of course the pressure is high, but that didn’t feel like the biggest issue today — and there are some nerves and the feeling that I want to do well, I always just go back to that fundamental idea that good skiing will be there for me. It’s not the end of the world and it’s so stupid to care this much, but I feel I have to question a lot now”, said also Mikaela Shiffrin.
The next two races in the women’s alpine skiing program are the super-giant slalom on Friday and the downhill on Tuesday. The individual program ends with the alpine combination (downhill + slalom) on February 17.
“The track is amazing and it’s a pleasure to ski on it. I have teammates who are very fast. We have athletes who can fill the gap. If I’m going to drop out on the fifth door every time, what’s the point? It’s not the end of the world and it’s. I don’t care so much, but I feel like I have to answer some questions. I’m very disappointed. My performance is a complete failure. I failed myself and let other people down”, said Mikaela Shiffrin. “My efforts were focused on the giant slalom and slalom and with my elimination in both races, I feel that all my work went to waste. So much work to be eliminated on the fifth door in both races”, added she.
Mikaela Shiffrin is an American two-time Olympic Gold Medalist and World Cup alpine skier. She is a three-time Overall World Cup champion, a four-time world champion in slalom, and a six-time winner of the World Cup discipline title in that event.