Mikaela Shiffrin defends her Olympic gold from Sochi in the first Alpine events from Yongpyong Alpine Centre. Can the American win a second gold?
Post updated to reflect weather delay.
Four years ago, American slalom specialist Mikaela Shiffrin took the world by storm. Shiffrin, just 18 years old at the time, was leading the FIS World Cup slalom standings and prime for a breakout performance. She delivered, managing to stay upright on a tense final run. The teenage star crossed the line more than a half-second faster than Austrian silver medalist Marlies Schild.
Over the four years since Sochi, Shiffrin has consolidated her position as her generation’s most dominant technical skier. In addition to her 2014 Olympic gold medal, Shiffrin also boasts a three-peat of FIS World Championships in the slalom.
This time around in South Korea, there is zero doubt that Shiffrin is the slalom star with the biggest target on her back. Both of the other two podium finishers from Sochi have retired, so Shiffrin will have neither Schild nor bronze medalist Kathrin Zettel to worry about.
Shiffrin is also the vanguard of generational turnover in the slalom. With the previous crop of slalom stars now on the sidelines, a new group of women will challenge Shiffrin for the Olympic gold. These challengers include Slovakian skier Petra Vlhova, Sweden’s Frida Hansdotter, and Swiss star Wendy Holdener. This trio will put the most pressure on Shiffrin as they vie for medal positions.
It would be surprising, though, to see anyone besides Shiffrin snatch away the gold when the slalom specialists hit the course at Yongpyong. Weather delays opened the door for Shiffrin to kick off these Winter Olympics with her best event. After staking claim to the title of the most dominant slalom skier of the 21st century, Shiffrin is ready to open her Olympic tally for 2018.
Next: How many medals will the United States win?
Here’s how you can watch the rescheduled Olympic women’s slalom final online.
Date: Thursday, Feb. 15
Time: TBD (first run), TBD ET (second run)
Location: Yongpyong, South Korea
Venue: Yongpyong Alpine Centre
Live Stream: NBC Olympics, FuboTV
Keep it tuned in here as we bring you the latest live streams and updated results for each Alpine skiing event over the course of the 2018 Winter Olympics.