+ A
A -
dpa
Paris
Mikaela Shiffrin claimed a women’s record-equalling 35th World Cup slalom victory in France on Saturday and with it joined an elusive group of skiers with 50 wins overall.
The American Shiffrin kept her perfect season record in the discipline as she clocked a combined total 1 minute 36.72 in Courchevel from two runs to beat Slovakia’s Petra Vlhova by 0.29 seconds, with Olympic champion Frida Hansdotter of Sweden third, 0.37 seconds back.
Shiffrin trailed Vlhova by four-hundredth at the final split but turned around matters again through the final gates.
The 23-year-old drew level on 35 slalom victories with former Austrian star Marlies Schild and can gain sole position of the record next week in Semmering, Austria.
The other women to reach the 50-win milestone are compatriot Lindsey Vonn (82), Austrian Annemarie Moser-Proell (62) and Swiss Vreni Schneider (55).
Swedish icon Ingemar Stenmark (86), Marcel Hirscher (63), fellow-Austrian Hermann Maier (54) and Italy’s Alberto Tomba (50) join the excluswie club from the men’s side.
“It is unbelievable when I think about the figures. But that is not the reason why I race. It is the moments when I realise I am skiing well. But of course everyone is talking about the records now,” Shiffrin said in first television interviews.
Vonn and Hirscher can further raise their tallies as they are still active but given her young age Shiffrin - who is also a two-time Olympic and three-time world champion - has the chance to rewrite all record books in the sport.
She earlier in the season became the first skier to win a World Cup race in all six disciplines currently contested - downhill, super-g, giant slalom, slalom, parallel races and super-combined.
Looking at Saturday’s race and the splits, Shiffrin admitted she wasn’t sure she had won.
“When I came to the finish line I saw minus, minus, plus and I thought, oh no, I am behind. But then I realised I was in front,” she said.
Vlhova said: “Of course second is nice. But I am always second and you try to improve. But Mikaela skied really fast today. I know that she is always fast after the last split so I believed she would catch me. But of course you hope in the finish area.”
Shiffrin tops the slalom rankings with a maximum 400 points from four events, and with now seven season top spots has a runaway lead en route to a third straight overall title on 889 points, a massive 501 points ahead of Vlhova (388).
Paris
Mikaela Shiffrin claimed a women’s record-equalling 35th World Cup slalom victory in France on Saturday and with it joined an elusive group of skiers with 50 wins overall.
The American Shiffrin kept her perfect season record in the discipline as she clocked a combined total 1 minute 36.72 in Courchevel from two runs to beat Slovakia’s Petra Vlhova by 0.29 seconds, with Olympic champion Frida Hansdotter of Sweden third, 0.37 seconds back.
Shiffrin trailed Vlhova by four-hundredth at the final split but turned around matters again through the final gates.
The 23-year-old drew level on 35 slalom victories with former Austrian star Marlies Schild and can gain sole position of the record next week in Semmering, Austria.
The other women to reach the 50-win milestone are compatriot Lindsey Vonn (82), Austrian Annemarie Moser-Proell (62) and Swiss Vreni Schneider (55).
Swedish icon Ingemar Stenmark (86), Marcel Hirscher (63), fellow-Austrian Hermann Maier (54) and Italy’s Alberto Tomba (50) join the excluswie club from the men’s side.
“It is unbelievable when I think about the figures. But that is not the reason why I race. It is the moments when I realise I am skiing well. But of course everyone is talking about the records now,” Shiffrin said in first television interviews.
Vonn and Hirscher can further raise their tallies as they are still active but given her young age Shiffrin - who is also a two-time Olympic and three-time world champion - has the chance to rewrite all record books in the sport.
She earlier in the season became the first skier to win a World Cup race in all six disciplines currently contested - downhill, super-g, giant slalom, slalom, parallel races and super-combined.
Looking at Saturday’s race and the splits, Shiffrin admitted she wasn’t sure she had won.
“When I came to the finish line I saw minus, minus, plus and I thought, oh no, I am behind. But then I realised I was in front,” she said.
Vlhova said: “Of course second is nice. But I am always second and you try to improve. But Mikaela skied really fast today. I know that she is always fast after the last split so I believed she would catch me. But of course you hope in the finish area.”
Shiffrin tops the slalom rankings with a maximum 400 points from four events, and with now seven season top spots has a runaway lead en route to a third straight overall title on 889 points, a massive 501 points ahead of Vlhova (388).
