What Did Mikaela Shiffrin Do Wrong in Her Ski Run? Lindsey Vonn Reveals Key Mistake

Mikaela Shiffrin could well be featured in the greatest alpine skiers of all time. But an Olympic record 3rd gold medal will have to wait. The US team continued to be hit by repeated falls in the Beijing Winter Olympics as Shiffrin suffered another setback. Going out at the 4th gate of the women’s slalom event, the coverage reportedly cut out crucial parts of her exit and most viewers weren’t able to see what it was exactly that caused Shiffrin to lose out on her run. Luckily, they had help. Lindsey Vonn, covering the event for NBC, was quick to explain her exit.

Shiffrin was poised to become the only 3-time Olympic gold medalist from America, but the 4th gate had other ideas. Skiing down what had been called the Icy River, Shiffrin seemingly miscued her racing line. She nearly fell over after one of her skis kicked too wide on a turn at the 4th gate.

She still remains fit and ready to go into the super-G speed race to complete her haul, an event she won at the 2019 World Championships. However, the mystery about how Shiffrin was out of the women’s slalom still remained. Especially in the eyes of several viewers who were not able to make out which gate she missed on her run.

Read More: ?Keep Your Head High? ? Lindsey Vonn Sends Mikaela Shiffrin An Uplifting Message After More Setbacks At Beijing Winter Olympics 2022

Lindsey Vonn points out the missed gate in Mikaela Shiffrin run

Veteran alpine skier, Lindsey Vonn, covering the Olympics for NBC this year, pointed out the miscue. Stating what she had seen, Vonn wrote, “she didn’t have the right direction heading into the next gate which led to her not finishing the race.”

To viewers, however, the clarification was still lacking some explanation. Apparently, the coverage had not covered Shiffrin until she had miscued her course. But Twitter was quick to the rescue. One user even emerged with video footage to follow. The clip set out which gate it was that Shiffrin would have been unable to make had she continued along her own course.

Shiffrin has already made her place in the annals of alpine skiing. She has dominated the sport ever since her first Olympic win at the Sochi games; and excelled in what is considered one of the most technical disciplines on offer. She is one of the most decorated athletes in the country with more World Cup slalom races than any male or female skier (47).

This would be impressive in itself even without her 4 world championships and 6 World Cup discipline titles. An added note on her consistency, the discipline titles are awarded to skiers for sustained excellence over the course of an entire season. And Shiffrin has 6.

Needless to say, the crashes at the Beijing games are an anomaly; and we hope that Shiffrin emerges from this stronger than ever!