Mikaela Shiffrin earned her fourth World Cup win of the season on Tuesday in Semmering, Austria. That was her first giant slalom victory since Dec. 21, 2021, and also her 78th World Cup win overall -- just four shy of the women's record set by her former Team USA teammate Lindsey Vonn.
The 27-year-old is also not too far from the men's all-time record of 86 from Sweden's Ingemar Stenmark. Shiffrin is currently this season's overall women's World Cup leader, topping the standings by 205 points.
Shiffrin was able to win on Tuesday thanks to a big opening-run. She had a 0.72 second lead over Petra Vlhová after the first leg, but Vlhová almost made a comeback by registering the fastest time in the final run. It was a good effort by the Slovakian skiier but Shiffrin's solid start helped her win by 0.13 seconds. Vlhová took second place and Italy's Marta Bassino finished third.
"It's very special," Shiffrin said. "GS is one of the hardest events for me, but also, when I'm skiing well, then it's just amazing.
"From the first turn I felt very good, I was very strong and dynamic, so I am super happy with my skiing."
Vonn, who retired in February 2019 after the World Championships, showed her support for Shiffrin on social media with four clapping emojis.
👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻 https://t.co/WefCkmcRbn
— lindsey vonn (@lindseyvonn) December 27, 2022
Shiffrin is competing in two more races in Semmering this week. She is taking on a second giant slalom on Wednesday and slalom on Thursday. Semmering is a good place for Shiffrin as she won all three events when the town last hosted races in December 2016.
