Mikaela Shiffrin’s Olympic struggles continued Wednesday with another shocking early exit in the first run of the slalom race.
Just two days after crashing 11 seconds into the opening run of the giant slalom race — in which she was the defending gold medalist — the 26-year-old American recorded another “Did Not Finish,” having skidded out of control and missed a gate after about 5 seconds on the course.
Shiffrin, the favorite in the slalom event, sat alone on the side of the course, set by her coach Mike Day, for several minutes after the disqualification.
Both the slalom and giant slalom are specialties of hers, technical races that combine the times of two runs, and she already owns an Olympic gold from each.
She had arrived in Beijing as one of the faces of the Games and with multi-medal expectations. She is seeking her fourth Olympic medal, and third gold, and will have her next opportunity to claim it Friday in the super-G competition. She has never competed in that event at an Olympics but did win it at the 2019 world championships.
Shiffrin has said she plans to enter all five individual races at the Yanqing Alpine Skiing Center, giving her three more chances at a gold medal that would make her the second female ski racer to win at least one at three consecutive Games.
After Monday’s quick exit, Shiffrin noted that her preparation for these Olympics wasn’t ideal, having dealt with a back problem that prevented her from training in October and November, and having contracted COVID-19 in late December.
Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.
