United States' Mikaela Shiffrin concentrates ahead of an alpine ski, women's World Cup slalom, in Gurgl, Austria, Saturday, Nov. 23, 2024. Credit: AP/Gabriele Facciotti
GURGL, Austria — Mikaela Shiffrin closed in on what would be the American ski star’s career win No. 99 on Saturday by setting the pace in the opening run of a women’s World Cup slalom.
Shiffrin wasn’t clean going into the steep of the Kirchenkar course but gained time on all competitors with a near-flawless section toward the finish.
Wendy Holdener was fastest at the first two splits and the Swiss racer, who missed most of last season after fracturing her left ankle, trailed Shiffrin by 0.13 seconds.
“It’s a pretty strange surface, like cold and dry. It’s hard to be clean on the skis. So, I was feeling a little bit funky on some spots,” Shiffrin said.
"But in the end, I kept pushing forward, just stayed on top of it and pushed to the finish. I find it to be really challenging on this condition to find the right setup to feel clean and to feel like you can unleash the skis.”
If Shiffrin holds on to her lead in the second run later Saturday, she will have five chances to earn her 100th victory during a North American sweep of the World Cup starting next week, with stops in Killington, Vermont; Mont-Tremblant, Quebec; and Beaver Creek, Colorado.
No other skier, male or female, has won more than 86 World Cup races. Shiffrin set the best mark when she overtook Swedish great Ingemar Stenmark in March 2023.
United States' Mikaela Shiffrin starts an alpine ski, women's World Cup slalom, in Gurgl, Austria, Saturday, Nov. 23, 2024. Credit: AP/Gabriele Facciotti
On Saturday, Katharina Liensberger of Austria was in third 0.52 behind, and Italian prodigy Lara Colturi, who starts for Albania, was nine-hundredths further back in fourth.
Shiffrin and Liensberger finished 1-2 in the first slalom of the season in Levi, Finland a week ago.
Shiffrin’s teammate Paula Moltzan trailed by 0.75 in seventh and was the last racer to finish less than a second off the lead.
Olympic champion Petra Vlhova, Shiffrin’s biggest rival in slalom, hasn’t returned to racing yet after undergoing knee surgery last season.
United States' Mikaela Shiffrin speeds down the course during an alpine ski, women's World Cup slalom, in Gurgl, Austria, Saturday, Nov. 23, 2024. Credit: AP/Giovanni Maria Pizzato
Gurgl is a new venue on the women’s World Cup, after it staged a men’s race last season. The resort in the Austrian Alps is just a 15-kilometer drive from Soelden, where the traditional season opener took place four weeks ago.
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