Mikaela Shiffrin reveals song she wrote in tribute to her dad (with help from her mom)

It's been an emotional year for alpine ski sensation Mikaela Shiffrin.

The sudden death of her father, Jeff, in February 2020, months after she lost her grandmother, led to the American stepping away from the sport, before the cancellation of events due to the Covid-19 pandemic made her consider her future in skiing.

Shiffrin returned to the slopes after a period of healing and reflection, sharing that she had developed a totally new perspective and motivation heading into this Winter sports season.

The 25-year-old also revealed to Olympic Channel that as part of that process, she had spent time learning guitar and playing music during the lockdowns over the past year.

Now, just days before the start of the world championships in Cortina, Shiffrin has paid tribute to her dad in a song she has written.

The two-time Olympic champion posted a video of her singing and playing the song on guitar, via her social media channels.

Shiffrin posted that the song was "original (written by me with help from my mom)"

In it, she remembers happier times with her dad, singing "I wish I could go back to the days when everything made sense."

The American also shares her feelings from being in the hospital the night he died, and ends the song with the line "I don't want to let you go"

In the past year, the Jeff Shiffrin Athlete Resiliency fund set up in his honour has raised hundreds of thousands of dollars for ski and snowboard athletes.

Despite missing the opening races of the 2021/2022 season, the three-time Olympic medallist has also returned to form and broken several records in recent months, including her 44th world cup slalom win to set a new mark for women in the discipline.

She'll lead the Team USA challenge for medals at the world championships from 7th February, a year ahead of the start of the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympic Games.