Ski queen Mikaela Shiffrin just snatched her sixth straight World Cup slalom victory – and her fifth of the season – in a dramatic comeback at the Semmering night race in Austria on December 28. The American superstar stormed from behind to edge Switzerland’s Camille Rast by a razor-thin 0.09 seconds, keeping her perfect slalom record alive heading into the 2026 Olympics.
But the real story? Shiffrin didn’t hold back after the win, slamming the “dangerous” and “borderline unsafe” course conditions that saw nearly 50% of racers crash out – one of the highest DNF rates in decades!
Mild weather forced organizers to inject water and salt to harden the snow, but it backfired big time. The surface crumbled during the afternoon run, turning the piste into a nightmare. Only 40 of 77 starters finished the first run, with a massive six-second gap just to qualify for the second.
In a powerful social media statement the next day, Shiffrin called it out:
“It felt borderline unsafe… Many athletes were frustrated, shaken, and even scared… A 50% DNF rate isn’t entertaining—it’s brutal… We need to do better for safety.”
She praised Rast and third-place Lara Colturi (Albania) for their epic skiing but stressed this wasn’t the “beautiful” side of the sport fans deserve. Thankfully, no major injuries – but Shiffrin vowed to keep speaking up when safety’s on the line.
This gutsy win marks Shiffrin’s 106th World Cup victory overall. She’s unstoppable in slalom right now – but her bold call-out has the ski world buzzing about needed changes from FIS.
