She’s the undisputed GOAT of alpine skiing — and Mikaela Shiffrin just made it crystal clear: nobody is pushing her off the mountain, not even for love.
In a fiery moment ahead of the World Cup season, the 30-year-old American superstar clapped back at fans urging her to retire and “just go be with Aleks” Kilde, her newly engaged fiancé and fellow skiing icon.
“Racing is part of who I am,” Shiffrin declared. “I don’t know if they say it to him, but people tell me all the time: ‘It’s time to retire. Go be with Aleks.’ It’s funny — and honestly, a little aggressive.”
The five-time overall World Cup champion and winner of 97 races (yes, ninety-seven) says the pressure reflects outdated expectations — not reality.
“It’s 2025,” she laughed. “We can have love and podiums. Both. At the same time.”
Her Norwegian partner, Aleksander Aamodt Kilde, backed her up:
“We’ve fought too hard to get here. Telling either of us to quit? That’s not support — that’s noise.”
The power couple — now engaged after Kilde’s glacier proposal — have faced crashes, comebacks, and global fame together since 2021. But Shiffrin says their bond fuels her fire, not dims it.
“Aleks gets it. I get it. We race because we have to — not because we have to choose between love and legacy.”
