Mikaela Shiffrin has made a name for herself in alpine skiing over the years. However, the American skier had a tough challenge in front of her. Shiffrin returned to skiing at the Audi FIS Ski World Cup after recovering from an injury and faced her biggest competitor, Petra Vlhova.

Slalom is Shiffrin’s forte. She boasts a remarkable record of 53 wins in the discipline. The American alpine skier entered the competition as the top favorite, however, she was soon left hoping for a podium finish as her biggest rival Petra Vlhova shone, and shone bright.

Petra Vlhova overtakes Mikaela Shiffrin

Though Mikaela Shiffrin boasts an illustrious career with 87 World Cup wins, her comeback was overshadowed by the Slovakian skier’s heroics. Petra Vlhova dominated all the runs with her speed and agility. In last year’s slalom event, Petra was defeated by Mikaela Shiffrin’s heroics, and she surely remembered that.

Vlhova made excellent runs in both races, finishing first in both. However, the 2x Olympic Champion Shiffrin couldn’t live up to her expectations, with miser finishes in both runs. In the first run, Shiffrin finished in 3rd place behind Lena Duerr with a score of 54.21 while the Slovaliakian skier finished first with a score of 53.79.

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Already under pressure, the training collision made things worse for the American star. She struggled to establish her flow and went on to finish at the 10th place in the second run. In the overall score, Shiffrin was placed 4th, meaning a podium-less finish for the 28-year-old American at the Audi FIS Ski World Cup 2023 in Levi. Although nothing serious, a bone bruise before the game surely rued Mikaela’s chances in Levi.

Last-minute injury spills Shiffrin’s chance at FIS World Cup

Podium-less finish is a major setback for Shiffrin. Out of the 13 appearances she has made in Levi, she has only missed the podium twice. Despite being deemed as the favorite, Shiffrin wasn’t at her best, making wobbly runs down the Rettenbach glacier. However, the American skier’s poor performance could partly be because of the training collision she suffered before the event.

In a social media update earlier, Shiffrin had announced that she had suffered a ‘bone bruise, but no other major damage” while training for the giant slalom event. Despite the setback, Shiffrin was eager for another slalom victory. However, fate had different plans for her. Shiffrin as well as her fans would be disappointed and would be hoping for a grand comeback from the 2x Olympian Champion.

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