Mikaela Shiffrin kicked off the 2025-26 FIS Alpine Ski World Cup season with a resilient fourth-place finish in the women’s giant slalom opener on the Rettenbach Glacier, marking her strongest performance in the discipline since a devastating crash nearly a year ago. The two-time Olympic champion, starting from bib 20 due to a challenging previous season, clocked a combined time of 2:17.93, finishing 1.42 seconds behind winner Julia Scheib of Austria.
Shiffrin’s result – her best World Cup GS finish in 21 months – comes on the heels of a harrowing incident on November 30, 2024, during the Killington giant slalom in Vermont. Leading after the first run in pursuit of her milestone 100th career victory, Shiffrin tumbled midway through her second descent, slamming into the catch fencing. The crash resulted in a deep puncture wound to the right side of her abdomen and severe trauma to her oblique abdominal muscles, requiring surgery to address fluid buildup and sidelining her for weeks. Remarkably, scans revealed no damage to bones, ligaments, or organs, but the injury triggered lingering post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) that plagued her return to racing.
“I’m over the moon… it’s a really really good step for me in GS, and I have improvements to make,” Shiffrin said post-race, her voice brimming with relief and optimism. “But for our team, this was a spectacular day!” The U.S. Ski & Snowboard Team indeed shone, with teammate Paula Moltzan securing a career-best second place (+0.58 seconds behind Scheib) and Nina O’Brien rounding out a strong showing in sixth. Moltzan, tying her previous best, credited the team’s depth and Shiffrin’s leadership for the collective triumph.
Scheib’s victory – her first in a World Cup career that includes a prior podium on this very course – ended a decade-long drought for Austrian women at home in Sölden, the traditional season kickoff since 1967. The 27-year-old set the pace with a blistering first run and held firm in the second, finishing in 2:16.51. Switzerland’s Lara Gut-Behrami, the Olympic super-G champion, claimed third (+1.11 seconds), rounding out an international podium.
For Shiffrin, the podium miss stung – she sat sixth after the opening run before climbing two spots – but the finish represented a “monumental step” in rebuilding confidence in giant slalom, where she holds the women’s record with 22 World Cup wins. Last season’s GS struggles were stark: after Killington, she managed just a 25th-place finish in her next outing before two did-not-finishes (DNFs) and a did-not-qualify (DNQ), costing her a top-starting bib this year. Despite the setbacks, Shiffrin rebounded elsewhere, notching her record 101st and 102nd World Cup victories in slalom and contributing to U.S. gold in the team event at the 2025 World Championships.
The Sölden result arrives amid heightened stakes, with the 2026 Milan-Cortina Olympics looming just over three months away. Shiffrin, who entered all six events at Beijing 2022 but left without a medal, plans a focused approach on slalom, giant slalom, and the team combined, while leaving the door open for super-G. “I’m feeling motivated but realistic,” she noted earlier this week, emphasizing recovery from PTSD and targeted training.
Teammate Moltzan, who shared the post-race podium glow with Shiffrin and Croatia’s Zrinka Ljutić (who placed fifth), echoed the sentiment of progress. “Mikaela’s return to form is inspiring,” Moltzan said. Shiffrin later took to social media to amplify the joy, posting: “The support and kindness… have been overwhelming (in the best way)… thank you all so much! Sharing this with teammates and especially on the podium with Paula Moltzan was truly unforgettable. (& Zrinka Ljutić too!)”
As the World Cup calendar unfolds – with men’s GS in Sölden on Sunday and Shiffrin’s favored slalom in Levi, Finland, next month – all eyes remain on the Vail native. With 101 career wins already etched in history, Shiffrin’s Sölden surge signals she’s far from done chasing Olympic redemption and further records. “More to come,” she teased in her update, a promise to fans and foes alike.
