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Mikaela Shiffrin Navigates Way to Super-G Bronze at St. Moritz

by Bob Reinert

Mikaela Shiffrin takes 3rd place during the Audi FIS Alpine Ski World Cup Women's Super G on Dec. 11, 2021 in St Moritz Switzerland. 

 

Making her 200th career world cup start, Mikaela Shiffrin of Team USA skied to a podium finish Saturday in the women’s super-G world cup event at St. Moritz, Switzerland.

Confronted with low-visibility and wintry conditions, Shiffrin managed her way to a bronze medal in 1 minute, 21.00 seconds, just behind Lara Gut-Behrami of Switzerland, who won gold in 1:19.82.

Sofia Goggia of Italy took the silver in 1:20.00, 0.18 behind the 30-year-old Gut-Behrami. Gut-Behrami, the defending super-G world cup champion, last year became the first woman to win four straight world cup events in the discipline since Lindsey Vonn of the U.S. accomplished the feat in 2015-16. Gut-Behrami’s 17 career super-G world cup victories are tied for second behind Vonn, who had 28.
“It wasn’t an easy race, visibility was low. You have to ski smooth and attack, too, so I am happy,” Gut-Behrami told Eurosport. “I am happy I was able to ski the way I wanted. If you look at the podium today, we have three different racers.

“We have a racer like Mikaela, who skis perfectly with a really clean technique, and Sofia is known to risk everything and now she is skiing much more safely.”

 

 

Shiffrin’s U.S. teammate Breezy Johnson placed 12th in 1:22.23. Other American finishers included A.J. Hurt (34th), Tricia Mangan (36th), Jacqueline Wiles (37th) and Nina O’Brien (43rd).

The 60 points Shiffrin earned with the third-place finish allowed the American to retain her overall lead in world cup standings with 465 points. The 26-year-old has wins in slalom and giant slalom thus far this season.

Goggia moved her into second place with 395 points, ahead of defending overall champion Petra Vlhova of Slovakia (340 points). Gut-Behrami is in fourth place with 298 points. Vlhova is not competing at St. Moritz this weekend. Johnson, who picked up a pair of silver medals last week at Lake Louise, Alberta, is in sixth place.

This was only Shiffrin’s second world cup super-G competition in nearly two years. She placed sixth last week at Lake Louise.

Goggia won the Lake Louise race, while Gut-Behrami was second. Goggia swept all three women’s events at Lake Louise.

There will be another women’s Super G race Sunday in St. Moritz.

Bob Reinert

Bob Reinert spent 17 years writing sports for The Boston Globe. He also served as a sports information director at Saint Anselm College and Phillips Exeter Academy. He is a contributor to TeamUSA.org on behalf of Red Line Editorial, Inc.