In the frosty embrace of the Arctic Circle, the Levi Black slope has become a fortress for two of alpine skiing’s most formidable talents. The last 13 women’s slalom races at this iconic FIS Alpine World Cup venue have been claimed exclusively by American superstar Mikaela Shiffrin or her Slovakian rival, Petra Vlhova, underscoring a dominance that borders on the surreal.
The streak, which now spans over a decade, traces its origins to the 2015/16 season and continued unabated through the 2023/24 campaign. Shiffrin, a four-time Olympic medalist and record-holding slalom specialist, boasts eight career victories in Levi, including her most recent triumph on November 12, 2024, when she capitalized on Vlhova’s dramatic second-run crash to secure her seventh win at the venue—tying the duo at six apiece from the prior year. Vlhova, the reigning Olympic slalom champion, responded with a commanding performance the day prior, edging out Germany’s Lena Duerr by 1.41 seconds to claim her sixth Levi title and level the head-to-head count.
This unbreakable partnership of excellence has left the rest of the field in pursuit of shadows. No other skier has breached the podium’s top spot in Levi since Slovenian legend Tina Maze’s victory in 2014. Maze’s win that November marked the end of an era, as Shiffrin and Vlhova—then emerging forces—began their ascent, transforming Levi into a personal proving ground.
“Levi has been kind to me, but it’s Petra and I pushing each other that makes it special,” Shiffrin reflected after her 2024 victory, acknowledging the bittersweet nature of Vlhova’s misfortune. The Slovakian, known for her explosive gate attacks, echoed the sentiment post her Saturday win: “I feel confident here. It’s amazing to win again, but Mikaela is always right there.”
The numbers paint a portrait of unparalleled consistency. Across these 13 races, Shiffrin has triumphed seven times, while Vlhova holds six. Their combined haul includes 21 podium finishes in Levi slaloms dating back to 2015, with the American appearing on the rostrum in 13 of the last 16 events overall. This season, as the 2025/26 World Cup calendar unfolds, both athletes enter as favorites once more, with the November 15 slalom poised to extend—or finally shatter—the streak.
For rising stars like Croatia’s Zrinka Ljutic and Switzerland’s Zoe Rast, who dueled for the 2024/25 slalom globe, Levi represents Everest. Yet, as Shiffrin noted, the pressure is mutual: “Petra earned that one today,” she said of her rival’s near-miss. In a sport defined by split-second precision and Arctic gales, the Shiffrin-Vlhova axis continues to redefine what’s possible, one flawless run at a time.
As the reindeer-adorned awards pile up—Maze received the sixth in 2014, with Shiffrin and Vlhova now collecting their own herds—the question lingers: Who will be the next to join this elite pantheon? For now, Levi remains their kingdom.
