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Mikaela Shiffrin is among the most adorned American alpine skiers of all time, and he or she added one other milestone to her legacy on February 18, 2026, in Milano on the Winter Olympics. The U.S. star captured gold within the ladies’s slalom, ending an eight-year Olympic medal drought and reasserting her dominance on the world stage.
“I’ve been very grateful to the staff, to my coaches and all people round me who helped me deal with the factor that’s probably the most significant, which is robust snowboarding, robust turns — simply correct snowboarding,” Shiffrin stated. “And that’s what I acquired to do at this time.”
Right here’s the whole lot that you must learn about her under.
Mikaela Shriffin Is an Olympic Gold Medalist Skier
Mikaela Pauline Shiffrin, born March 13, 1995, is among the most adorned alpine skiers in Olympic historical past. She received her first gold medal in slalom on the 2014 Sochi Video games, turning into the youngest Olympic slalom champion on the time. She added one other gold in big slalom and a silver in alpine mixed on the 2018 Pyeongchang Olympics.
On the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milano, Shiffrin captured one other gold in slalom. Recognized primarily for her dominance in slalom and big slalom, she has additionally competed in pace occasions like super-G and downhill, showcasing her versatility throughout disciplines.
Mikaela Is Additionally a World Document Holder
Shiffrin has rewritten the report books all through her profession. In 2023, she surpassed Swedish legend Ingemar Stenmark’s long-standing report for probably the most Alpine Snowboarding World Cup wins, turning into the winningest skier — male or feminine — in World Cup historical past. She has continued so as to add to that complete, extending her lead with victories throughout a number of disciplines.
Shiffrin has been particularly dominant in slalom, the place she beforehand broke the report for many wins in a single World Cup self-discipline. Over time, she has battled rivals like Slovakia’s Peter Vlhova in a few of the sport’s most dramatic races, usually coming from behind to safe slender victories.
“Any time you’re capable of be somewhat bit quicker than Petra, that’s an unbelievable job,” Mikaela stated in 2022, per CNN. “She’s so robust, she’s making no errors, she’s snowboarding slalom the way in which it’s meant to be skied. It’s spectacular. It’s actually particular to look at that. It’s a particular season she’s had up to now. It’s not stopping tonight, that’s for certain.”
She Added to Her Olympic Legacy in 2026
Heading into the 2022 Beijing Olympics, Shiffrin was already among the many most adorned American alpine skiers in historical past, trailing solely legends like Julia Mancuso and Bode Miller in complete Olympic medals. Whereas Beijing didn’t deliver the medal haul she had hoped for, Shiffrin returned to the Olympic stage on the 2026 Winter Video games in Milano and captured one other gold medal in slalom, additional strengthening her place in U.S. snowboarding historical past.
With a number of Olympic gold medals throughout her profession, Shiffrin stays among the many elite firm of girls who’ve received three or extra Olympic golds in alpine snowboarding. As she continues competing on the highest degree, she has the chance to climb even greater on the all-time Olympic medal lists.
She’s Engaged to Fellow Alpine Skier Aleksander Aamodt Kilde
Shiffrin is engaged to Norwegian alpine snowboarding star Aleksander Aamodt Supplyone of many prime males’s speed-event racers on the earth. The couple went public with their relationship in 2021 and have steadily supported one another via World Cup seasons, Olympic competitions and damage recoveries.
In April 2024, Shiffrin and Kilde introduced their engagement, sharing the information with followers on social media. Each athletes have spoken overtly about balancing their relationship with the calls for of elite competitors, usually coaching and racing on completely different circuits whereas staying linked throughout lengthy stretches aside.
She Has Spoken In regards to the Pressures of Being an Olympian
Shiffrin has been candid in regards to the intense expectations that include being considered one of Crew USA’s largest stars. Following the broader dialog round athlete psychological well being on the Tokyo 2020 Olympics, she acknowledged the burden of public stress heading into Beijing in 2022.
“The stress is all the time there, and you reside with it, and also you let it drive you,” she advised the Related Press. “But in addition, you’ll be able to’t let it dominate you, can’t let it take over your mentality.” Shiffrin stated that some people view that Olympians need to win “gold or else that’s an enormous disappointment,” which solely will increase the stress on rivals.
“It even went a step past that. It wouldn’t have been a ‘disappointment;’ individuals simply didn’t even take into account it a risk. And what I do know from that type of stress is: It isn’t straightforward to win. Ever.”