LEVI, Finland: Mikaela Shiffrin opened the Olympic slalom season in convincing style Saturday by dominating a World Cup race in Finnish Lapland for her record-extending 102nd career win.
The American star built on a commanding first-run lead of more than a second, clocked the fastest time again in the final run and won the race by 1.66 seconds from second-placed Lara Colturi.
“It’s for sure a good feeling, it was so nice to race today. I felt really strong on both runs,” said Shiffrin, adding she didn’t want to be too cautious in protecting her big lead.
“I was just feeling like: ‘Oh, don’t mess it up, like it would be embarrassing, kind of.’ But then, in the end, if you are pushing as hard as you can, you can’t mess it up.”
Colturi, an Italian-born prodigy competing for Albania, matched her career-best result. Colturi turned 19 on Saturday.
All-rounder Emma Aicher placed third, 2.59 behind, for her first podium in a tech race. The German, who turned 22 last Thursday, won a downhill and a super-G last March.
Shiffrin’s teammate Paula Moltzan, who finished runner-up in the season-opening giant slalom in Austria three weeks ago, was 2.46 off the lead in 19th but improved to fourth place, which she shared with Aicher’s teammate Lena Duerr.
Shiffrin and Moltzan now rank 1-2 in the overall standings after two races.
Slalom World Cup champion Zrinka Ljutic of Croatia was fourth after the opening run and dropped to sixth.
Shiffrin laid the foundation for her 65th slalom victory with an aggressive first run.
“This was the best run I could do, that was kind of perfect,” Shiffrin said after the opening run, calling it “a wonderful feeling” to replicate some of her best skiing from training.
“The whole summer prep I was focusing really a lot on giant slalom, so I didn’t get so many slalom days,” said the American, who placed fourth in the GS in October.
“But then when I did train slalom, it was really important to be maximum quality, maximum intensity every run.”
Recovered from a frightening crash in a GS a year ago, Shiffrin announced before the season she planned to reduce her schedule to slalom and GS, and maybe super-G, heading into the Milan Cortina Winter Olympics in February.
Shiffrin won Olympic gold in slalom in 2014 and in GS in four years later.
Nine of Shiffrin’s record 102 World Cup wins have come in the traditional season-opening slalom in Lapland, where the winner is given a reindeer as a prize.
No skier other than Shiffrin or Petra Vlhova of Slovakia has won the race in 14 editions since then overall champion Tina Maze triumphed in 2014.
Vlhova, who is the 2022 Olympic slalom champion, is still recovering from the lingering knee injury she sustained in January 2024.
A men’s slalom on the same hill is scheduled for Sunday. The women travel to Austria for another slalom next weekend.
US ski star Shiffrin dominates 1st World Cup slalom of Olympic season for career win 102
https://arab.news/83uk2
US ski star Shiffrin dominates 1st World Cup slalom of Olympic season for career win 102
- “It’s for sure a good feeling, it was so nice to race today. I felt really strong on both runs,” said Shiffrin
- Colturi, an Italian-born prodigy competing for Albania, matched her career-best result
Talwar leads on opening day of 2025 Saudi Open
- The 26-year-old from Delhi set a new course record of 8-under 64 at Dirab Golf & Country Club
RIYADH: India’s Saptak Talwar opened the first day of the 2025 Saudi Open, sanctioned by the Asian Tour, with a new course record of 64 (8-under) after finishing his round with a birdie on the final hole in fading light at the Dirab Golf & Country Club.
The 26-year-old from Delhi, who has competed in only a handful of Asian Tour events since turning professional in 2021, delivered a flawless round that included four birdies on each nine, placing him at the top of the leaderboard.
In second place are American John Catlin, the defending champion and reigning Asian Tour Order of Merit winner, and Australia’s Jack Thompson, both carding 65.
Meanwhile, rising Moroccan talent Adam Bresnu stole the spotlight as the leading Arab player on the opening day, after a strong performance that placed him firmly in contention.
Despite still being an amateur, Bresnu exemplified the Arab Golf Federation’s vision of creating clear pathways for regional talent to reach the highest levels of the professional game.
Through its partnership with the Arab Golf Federation, Golf Saudi is expanding high-level opportunities for amateur and professional Arab players.
Bresnu said: “The conditions were really good. What I liked most about the course was how firm the greens and fairways were. The greens are excellent, and I’m really happy to be here.”
“I’ll keep the same mindset. Patience is the main goal,” he added. “It’s a four-round tournament, day by day, shot by shot. My goal is simply to enjoy playing.”
Saudi Arabia players are still in contention as they progress into day two.
Shergo Al-Kurdi said: “Representing the Kingdom is amazing, the crowd support is definitely a big one. In general just being in Saudi, I always enjoy my time here and just want to perform the best I can. It’s a good place to have a nice week.”
He added: “The amount of support Saudi gives to their players is absolutely fantastic and it’s what golfers need to get into a higher level of golf. It is what is needed and they are prepared to do it. It’s very good what they’re doing.”
