The specter of Beijing 2022 returned to haunt Mikaela Shiffrin on Tuesday at the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics, as the greatest slalom skier in history delivered a tense, tentative performance in the slalom leg of the inaugural women’s team combined event—finishing 15th out of 18 and costing her and teammate Breezy Johnson a near-certain medal.
The duo, defending world champions in the format and heavy favorites entering the day, slid to a heartbreaking fourth place, missing bronze by a razor-thin 0.06 seconds after Johnson’s dominant downhill lead evaporated in the afternoon.
Austria’s Ariane Raedler and Katharina Huber etched their names into Olympic history with gold in a combined time of 2:21.66. Germany’s Kira Weidle-Winkelmann and Emma Aicher claimed silver (2:21.71), while fellow Americans Jackie Wiles and Paula Moltzan took bronze (2:21.91)—benefiting directly from Shiffrin’s uncharacteristic struggle.
Johnson, fresh off her individual downhill gold, attacked the Olympia delle Tofane course with precision in the morning, clocking 1:36.59—the fastest downhill time—and handing Shiffrin a slim but workable lead of about 0.06 seconds over the field heading into slalom.
Yet Shiffrin, who has won seven of eight World Cup slaloms this season, clinched the Crystal Globe early, and boasts a record 71 slalom victories (part of her all-time 108 World Cup wins), never found her rhythm. Starting last with the advantage, she lost time at every intermediate split, skiing with visible tension and rounder turns than her trademark aggressive style. Her slalom time of 45.38 seconds ranked 15th among finishers—a full second behind Germany’s Emma Aicher—and marked her worst completed slalom placement since 2012, when she was just 17.
The result extended Shiffrin’s Olympic medal drought to seven consecutive races without a podium, echoing the nightmare of Beijing 2022 where she went 0-for-6 with three DNFs (including in slalom and giant slalom) despite entering as the dominant force. After golds in slalom (Sochi 2014) and giant slalom plus combined silver (PyeongChang 2018), the 30-year-old’s Olympic technical events have become a baffling contrast to her unparalleled World Cup consistency.
“I didn’t quite find a comfort level that allows me to produce full speed,” Shiffrin said afterward, careful to avoid excuses. “I’ve been so prepared for all the slaloms this year. There’s something to learn from this day, and I’m going to learn it.”
NBC commentator Steve Porino described the run as skied “with tension,” while analysts noted that even a 13th-fastest slalom would have secured gold. The near-miss stung deeply in the event’s Olympic debut, especially as Johnson embraced her teammate at the finish amid celebrations from the podium finishers.
With individual giant slalom looming soon and slalom later, the pressure intensifies for Shiffrin to exorcise the Olympic demons that have plagued her since 2018. For now, the ghosts of Beijing linger, reminding even the sport’s most dominant technician that the five-ring stage can bring out vulnerabilities no World Cup hill ever does.
