Mikaela Shiffrin was glowing. Not from the glare of gold medals or the thrill of competition, but from something quieter, more personal. We’re talking about a moment with Aleksander Kilde. Mikaela Shiffrin and Aleksander Aamodt Kilde went public with their relationship in May 2021, when Kilde posted, “If you know, you know… and now you know.” Since then, their bond has been defined not by grand gestures but by moments of loyalty through injury and recovery.

Airports are usually checkpoints between training camps and race days, familiar and fast-paced. But this time, her steps felt different, measured, reflective. She moved through the terminal with intention, documenting the little things along the way: the curve of a luggage trolley, the passing glint of airport stores. “I’m a sucker for airport stores,” she joked, “but we didn’t have time for that rn.” This wasn’t a travel day for skiing. It was something far more meaningful.

It started in the backseat of a car, her face mostly covered by a black mask. “Finally going to see my mann,” she wrote on Instagram while filming her journey. There was a softness in her face, even through typed words. Inside the airport, she tucked herself into a “little private calling cubicle” to FaceTime him, Aleksander Aamodt Kilde, smiling on the screen. But this reunion wasn’t just emotional, it was careful. “Wearing a mask to limit the chances of bringing sickness to Aleks with his infection risk,” she shared, referencing his long recovery from a devastating crash and subsequent infection earlier this year. Every frame of her journey carried weight. Love, here, looked like caution, patience, and presence. Then came the final leg.

Onboard the plane: “Omg so close.” Upon landing: “The last time we saw each other was in March.” As she stepped off with her luggage, “Travelling light.” And at last, she spotted him. “I see him.” Kilde, standing just ahead, lifted his phone and began filming, her smile, her walk, the moment they’d both waited three long months for. Later, she shared what words often struggle to hold: “It’s not easy being away from each other so often, for so long. Last time @akilde and I were together was in March after WC Finals. That’s part of what it takes to do what we do, for now… Never taking for granted the time we do have together!🫶”

Their story has always been grounded in that quiet steadiness. From friendship in 2014 to a relationship in 2021, to their engagement in April 2024, they’ve never needed noise. Just presence. Just love that waits and shows up. But what really brought them closer? It wasn’t just time, it was surviving the hardest moments. Remember last year? They didn’t just get through it; they got through it together.

Mikaela Shiffrin and Aleksander Kilde nursed each other through the hardest year

 In January 2024, Kilde suffered a brutal crash in Wengen, tearing ligaments, damaging nerves, and needing emergency surgery. Mikaela flew to Switzerland to be by his side, helping with everything from meals to morale as he fought off a life-threatening infection and endured weeks of IV antibiotics. He later described the experience as “a life-or-death” battle. Through pain and surgeries, she never left his side. “I wouldn’t be standing here if it weren’t for her,” Kilde said later.

Just months later, the roles reversed. In November 2024, Mikaela crashed in Killington, suffering a deep puncture wound to her abdomen that required surgery. “It felt like I was stabbed,” she said, and the recovery was agonizing, “even coughing or laughing hurt.” Though still in recovery himself, Kilde offered emotional support, flying in to stay near her in Colorado and checking in constantly. “My biggest reason for coming is Mikaela,” he said during her rehab. She was battling not only pain but PTSD: “I had irrational fears… the trauma wasn’t just physical.” Kilde helped her through it with a calm presence and constant reassurance.

They both describe the past year as “total survival mode,” but it was during these hardest months that their relationship deepened into something unshakable. Whether it was Mikaela quietly sitting bedside during Kilde’s lowest point or him showing up unannounced during her most fragile moments, the support has been mutual, instinctive, and raw. As they now train for the 2026 Olympics, often competing six hours apart, they rely on emotional check-ins and virtual rituals. As Mikaela once put it: “He’s the only person who truly gets it.” In the face of physical pain, mental health struggles, and elite pressure, their love hasn’t just endured—it’s become their greatest strength.