Amid the high-stakes tension of the Milano Cortina Winter Olympics, Mikaela Shiffrin has given fans a lighthearted moment to rally around: a self-inflicted eyebrow mishap that’s gone viral.
In an Instagram video posted on February 9, the 30-year-old skiing superstar explained why eagle-eyed viewers might notice her right eyebrow looking noticeably thinner—or missing a chunk in the middle—during competition.
“If you see me in the next few weeks with half an eyebrow, no you didn’t,” Shiffrin joked in the clip. She traced the issue back to an old scar from a balance-training accident years ago, when she fell and split her eyebrow open, requiring 30 stitches from a plastic surgeon. The scar sometimes causes her eyebrow hairs to grow unevenly, like a “Truffula Tree.”
Attempting some “general maintenance” at the Olympic Village to embrace the scar with a stylish slash, Shiffrin admitted she “went a bit too far” with the trimming. “I did a little bit of extra trimming… I went a little bit too far,” she said with a laugh. “It is what it is.”
The candid, self-deprecating post quickly spread across social media, offering fans a relatable glimpse behind the scenes of one of the Games’ biggest stars. It provided a brief respite from the disappointment of her fourth-place finish in the team combined event the following day.
Shiffrin, who has balanced intense preparation with moments of humor throughout her career, turned what could have been an awkward distraction into a viral bonding moment. As she prepares for the giant slalom on Sunday, the “half-eyebrow” saga has become a quirky footnote in an otherwise pressure-filled Olympics—proof that even legends have off days with tweezers.
