Alpine Ski World Cup 2023/24: Mikaela Shiffrin closes out slalom season with a bang
The American superstar won her 60th World Cup slalom and 97th World Cup race overall, bowing out of the 2023/24 season with her eighth Crystal Globe in the discipline. Mina Fuerst Holtmann and Anna Swenn Larsson finished second and third, respectively.
Alpine Skiing
Mikaela Shiffrin drew the curtain on her 2023/24 season at the Alpine skiing FIS World Cup finals in Saalbach, Austria, with a seventh slalom victory on Saturday (16 March).
The double Olympic gold medallist raced to her 60th World Cup win in the slalom and 97th overall, bringing an injury-plagued season to a thrilling end. The spring conditions made for tricky skiing, particularly for the top contenders racing in reverse order.
Shiffrin secured her eighth slalom Crystal Globe with her 96th World Cup win in Are, Sweden, on her return to competition after crashing in Cortina d’Ampezzo at the end of January. She returned in style, winning back-to-back races to close out her season on a high.
Swedish skier Anna Swenn Larsson topped the standings after the first run, with Shiffrin, just 0.11 seconds adrift, biting at her heels in second place.
The conditions resulted in some of the contenders registering DNFs behind their names, including Paula Moltzan and Croatia’s Zrinka Ljutic, who was third after the first run.
But Shiffrin, going down the piste second last, was once again the epitome of consistency as she moved to the top of the standings with only Swenn Larsson left art the starting gate. Swenn Larsson could not build on her lead from the first run and had to settle for third place.
Shiffrin tasted victory with a combined time of one minute, 53.22 seconds (1:53.22), with Norway’s Mina Fuerst Holtmann finishing as runner-up, 0.54 seconds behind her. Swenn Larsson finished third in 1:53.85.
“Oh wow! It has been a wild season. I am really happy to be sitting here (in this position) and for the final race of the season to go so well,” Shiffrin told the FIS.
“I am looking forward to next season already. I never focus too much on the numbers (winning statistics) but now feel okay with them. It is not pressure, it is just an honour.”
Saalbach, FIS World Cup: Results from women's slalom, 16 March 2024 (top 10):
- Mikaela Shiffrin (USA) 1:53.22
- Mina Fuerst Holtmann (NOR) +0.54
- Anna Swenn Larsson (SWE) +0.63
- Neja Dvornik (SLO) +0.67
- Katharina Huber (AUT) +0.79
- Katharina Liensberger (AUT) +0.93
- Ali Nullmeyer (CAN) +1.06
- Camille Rast (SUI) +1.07
- Martina Peterlini (ITA) +1.16
- Michelle Gisin (SUI) +1.29
Full race standings and split timings are available on the FIS Ski website.