Mikaela Shiffrin Aims for Historic 100th World Cup Win in Vermont

Mikaela Shiffrin is poised to achieve a remarkable milestone in her skiing career as she targets her 100th World Cup victory. The American skiing sensation, who recently claimed her 99th win in Gurgl, Austria, will return to familiar terrain next weekend in Killington, Vermont, where she will compete in a giant slalom and a slalom event.

«I guess it’s not impossible, but so many things have to go right,» Shiffrin commented following her latest triumph in the Austrian Alps. She acknowledged the difficulty of the achievement, stating, «It takes, like even today, so much energy to bring out my top skiing, so it’s certainly not easy.»

Shiffrin, who hails from Colorado, spent part of her early training years at Burke Mountain Academy near Killington, making the upcoming races feel like home-ground competition. The North American leg of the World Cup is set to continue after Killington with additional events in Mont-Tremblant, Quebec, and Beaver Creek, Colorado.

The pressure of reaching the 100-win milestone is something Shiffrin is keenly aware of. «I guess there is a bit of pressure around it, but I’ll try to ignore that,» she stated, emphasizing that she hopes to perform well in front of a supportive local crowd.

Having already surpassed Ingemar Stenmark’s previous record of 86 World Cup victories in March 2023, Shiffrin is now the leading World Cup champion in the sport, a title she continues to defend fiercely. Her recent form includes six consecutive slalom victories since recovering from a knee injury.

In her latest race, Shiffrin narrowly defeated Lara Colturi of Albania by 0.55 seconds and Camille Rast of Switzerland by 0.57 seconds. Colturi, an 18-year-old skier, made history as the first Albanian and youngest in five years to podium in a World Cup event. Wendy Holdener of Switzerland and Shiffrin’s teammate, Paula Moltzan, also delivered strong performances, finishing fourth and sixth respectively.

Shiffrin shared her reflections on her first career podium in 2011, expressing admiration for new talents like Colturi and Rast. «It was incredible, with Marlies [Raich] and Tina [Maze],» Shiffrin recalled, reflecting on her own early days of competition.

While Shiffrin prepares for her attempt at a 100th victory, her main slalom competitor, Petra Vlhova, remains absent from the circuit following knee surgery last season. Vlhova is expected to resume on-snow training shortly.

The men’s competition will take place on the same hill in Gurgl with a slalom event scheduled for Sunday, continuing the current World Cup schedule.