All eyes were indeed on America’s two skiing legends, Mikaela Shiffrin and Lindsey Vonn, as they went head-to-head for the first time in six years during Sunday’s women’s World Cup super-G on the iconic Corviglia course in St. Moritz. The matchup, the first since 2019, lived up to the pre-race hype in drama but delivered mixed results for the U.S. stars, with New Zealand’s Alice Robinson stealing the spotlight by claiming her maiden super-G victory.
Robinson, already a force in giant slalom this season, dominated the field with a flawless run, clocking 1:14.84 to secure her third win of the 2025-26 campaign. France’s Romane Miradoli took second (+0.08 seconds), while Italy’s Sofia Goggia rounded out the podium in third (+0.19), marking her second consecutive bronze after the weekend’s downhills.
Lindsey Vonn, the 41-year-old comeback sensation, capped an extraordinary weekend with a strong fourth-place finish (+0.27), just missing the podium by eight hundredths of a second behind Goggia. Fresh off a historic downhill victory on Friday—her 83rd World Cup win and first since 2018—and a runner-up spot on Saturday, Vonn’s consistent speed performances underscored her remarkable return to elite form after retirement and knee surgery. “It was OK, but definitely not the way I’ve been skiing in training,” Vonn reflected post-race. “I’m a little disappointed, but happy to learn early in the season.”
The weekend’s narrative, however, centered on the rare U.S. intra-squad duel. Shiffrin, the all-time World Cup wins leader with 104 victories and dominant in technical events this season, made her super-G return after nearly two years away—the discipline’s demands sidelined since December 2023. Starting with bib 31, the 30-year-old looked composed and on pace for a top-15 finish through the early intervals. But in a heartbreaking moment, Shiffrin missed the penultimate gate, resulting in a did-not-finish (DNF)—her third straight super-G without a scored result.
Despite the outcome, Shiffrin’s participation signaled her ambition to expand beyond slalom and giant slalom ahead of the 2026 Milano-Cortina Olympics, where she aims to compete across disciplines. The St. Moritz super-G marked a pivotal test for Olympic qualification and seeding points.
The American team still shone brightly overall, with multiple top-30 finishes contributing to a strong speed weekend. Vonn and the speed specialists now head to Val d’Isère, France, for downhill and super-G races on December 20-21, while Shiffrin shifts focus to technical events, including a slalom in Courchevel.
In a season building toward Olympic glory, Sunday’s race reminded fans why Shiffrin and Vonn remain alpine skiing’s most electrifying figures—generations apart, yet united in pushing the sport’s boundaries.
