DENVER (KDVR) — Mikaela Shiffrin, a decorated Olympic skier, was heading for a historic World Cup title on Saturday, until she crashed on the slopes, leaving her with injuries and a long recovery period.
Shiffrin, who will soon be inducted into the Colorado Sports Hall of Fame, has earned five overall World Cup titles, two Olympic gold medals, an Olympic silver medal and seven world championships. By Saturday, she was aiming for her 100th World Cup win.
The 29-year-old was leading after the first run at the Stifel Killington Cup in Killington, Vermont, and was within sight of the finish line. But five gates onto the steep finish pitch, she hit a gate, somersaulted and slid into another gate. The fencing eventually slowed her momentum as she came to a stop.
At the time, Shiffron was taken by ambulance to a local medical center, where her scans appeared clear. However, the U.S. Ski & Snowboard Team later posted on X that Shiffrin had a “puncture wound into the right side of her abdomen and severe muscle trauma.”
After sitting out on the rest of what could have been a winning weekend, Shiffrin provided updates on her injuries on Monday.
Shiffrin posted on X that she had been “impaled” and that it might take her a few weeks to get back.
“Gonna be a minute…like a few weeks minimum…to be able to take on much of any force. Thank you all for every ounce of love and support, in the grand scheme, it’s a small pot hole (pun intended), and I’m very thankful for that!” said Shiffrin on X.
While Shiffrin wasn’t able to grab her 100th World Cup skiing event, she still holds the record for the most alpine skiing World Cup wins with 99. She won two consecutive slalom events last month, which put her on pace to win this weekend.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by PostX News and is published from a syndicated feed.)
