The upcoming women’s slalom race at the Milan Cortina Winter Olympics is set to feature an exciting showdown between Mikaela Shiffrin and her Swiss competitor, Camille Rast. Rast recently put an end to Shiffrin’s six-race winning streak in World Cup slaloms by defeating her by a slim margin of 0.14 seconds in Slovenia. Despite Rast holding the lead after the first leg in Austria, Shiffrin managed to make a remarkable comeback on a challenging course to secure the win.
Rast, the reigning slalom world champion, clinched her fourth career victory and third in slalom on Sunday. Shiffrin acknowledged Rast’s strong performance, noting that she had to push herself to the limit to compete with her rival. Shiffrin expressed satisfaction with her own skiing and celebrated her efforts after completing her final run.
The victory in Slovenia followed Rast’s maiden giant slalom win on the same hill, where she dedicated her triumph to the victims of a recent fire near her hometown. Rast attributed her success to her high energy levels and described the slope conditions as excellent.
In the race, Rast and Shiffrin dominated the field, with Wendy Holdener, Rast’s teammate, finishing in third place over 1.83 seconds behind. Shiffrin’s teammate, Paula Moltzan, claimed fourth place, with no other racer coming within two seconds of the leading pair.
Shiffrin, a multiple-time world champion in slalom, extended her impressive record with her 69th slalom win and 106th overall World Cup victory. Meanwhile, defending slalom World Cup champion Zrinka Ljutic failed to finish yet again, and other notable racers faced challenges during the event.
The next slalom race is scheduled for January 13 in Flachau, followed by another competition in the Czech Republic before the Winter Olympics. Additionally, upcoming downhill and super-G events are set to take place in Austria next weekend, with no men’s World Cup races scheduled for the same period.