“We Still Miss This Guy”: Mikaela Shiffrin’s Mother Reminisces Her Father’s Memory With a Heart-Touching Poem

A tragic event three years ago took the life of Mikaela Shiffrin’s dad, and neither Shiffrin nor her family has overcome the loss yet. In 2020, Jeff, aged 65, passed away due to a head injury. The shocking demise continues to overwhelm the family with grief and pain. Shiffrin’s mother, Eileen, was married 34 years to the man she fell in love with, on the slopes.

As her heart bunches heavy emotions, Eileen shares a sentimental poem that best portrays the thoughts and feelings of someone grieving a loved one.  gives hope on where this devastating phase could be headed at.

The void is still felt

The passing of Jeff, Shiffrin’s pillar of strength left the entire family shattered into bits. Despite a monumental effort to come to terms with the reality, “There are no words to describe how we still miss this guy,” Eileen wrote in her Instagram post. She also shared a nostalgic collection of pictures that reminisced about their times.

The skiing icon’s mother shared a poem that “really touch on many of the feelings related to our loss, and I thought I would share.” Depicting her family’s feelings, a line in the poem reads “Times of loss never dim quickly.” With time, “Lives and recollections become intertwined,” and encapsulate “Smiles, frowns, joys and woes.” And then there would come a day. A day that gives “A chance, a dream .. a hope” and “A vision of coming back to your best” and be “Able to embrace life, not just to cope.”

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The day may be near or far, but one can hope it is sure to come. For the Olympic champion, her love of the piste, has deeper roots than many know.

Mikaela Shiffrin and her family have a deep connection with the slopes

Eileen and Jeff fell in love on the slopes and have been pivotal in teaching Shiffrin skiing, and in nurturing her skills to become synonymous with the sport. Had Jeff been alive, one can imagine his exhilaration watching his little girl win her 85th World Cup, just one cup short of beating the world record of 86 by any skier.

However, the 2-time Olympic medalist still holds a distinct record of winning races in each of the six ski disciplines (downhill, super-G, slalom, giant slalom, combined, and parallel) in the World Cups. While it is an irreplaceable loss that the skiing star’s mom and family are coming to terms with, it is certain that Shiffrin’s father will continue to live on, in her legacy.

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