Two of alpine skiing’s biggest American stars, Lindsey Vonn and Mikaela Shiffrin, will share the spotlight this weekend in St. Moritz as the women’s World Cup speed season kicks off, marking a crucial milestone on the road to the 2026 Milan Cortina Olympics.
For Vonn, 41, the Swiss resort represents the long-awaited start of her 2025-26 campaign. The 2010 Olympic downhill champion, who famously returned from retirement last season, plans to race all three events on the program—two downhills and one super-G—after missing the early-season speed races. Her comeback year produced mixed results initially, but she closed strong with a super-G podium in Sun Valley last spring, becoming the oldest woman ever to stand on a World Cup podium. A strong performance this weekend would reinforce her ambition to become the oldest Olympic alpine medalist in history at next year’s Games.
Competing alongside her will be countrywoman Mikaela Shiffrin, who has dominated the early technical races this season with three victories and six top-six finishes in seven starts, including a perfect record in slalom. The two-time Olympic champion has not contested a speed event since January 2024 and last raced super-G in December 2023. Her decision to enter Sunday’s super-G marks the first phase of reintroducing speed disciplines into her program ahead of Milan Cortina, where she is expected to chase medals in both technical and speed events.
The weekend begins with the first downhill on Friday, December 12 at 4:15 a.m. ET, followed by a second downhill on Saturday and the super-G on Sunday. With both American superstars in the start gate, St. Moritz promises to be one of the most anticipated stops of the young season.
