In a moment captured at the finish area, Mikaela Shiffrin gazed straight ahead with a stern expression—no smile, no sense of satisfaction—revealing clear frustration following her sixth-place result in the women’s World Cup giant slalom. For an athlete accustomed to dominating the podium, the outcome evidently fell short of her lofty expectations, underscoring the ongoing challenges in a discipline where she continues to rebuild confidence.
Austria’s Julia Scheib thrilled the home crowd by claiming her third giant slalom victory of the 2025-26 season, finishing in 1:56.46 ahead of Switzerland’s Camille Rast (+0.14) and Sweden’s Sara Hector (+0.40). Shiffrin, the all-time World Cup wins leader with 105 victories and a historic force in technical events, crossed the line 1.45 seconds back, marking her continued struggle in giant slalom amid a dominant slalom campaign.
Shiffrin, who has won all four slaloms this season, started the day in eighth after the first run but improved slightly in the second on a bumpy, shadowed course that tested the field. This sixth-place finish extends her podium drought in giant slalom to 10 races—her longest since early in her career—as she works back from a serious injury sustained last season.
The American star described the conditions as “quite challenging,” noting the bumps and low light made the second run her toughest test of the season so far. Despite the setback in GS, Shiffrin remains a strong contender for the overall title and heads into Sunday’s slalom in Semmering aiming to extend her winning streak in the discipline.
