Mikaela Shiffrin crashed into the safety nets after losing control during a jump during a World Cup downhill on Friday at the Milan-Cortina 2026 Olympics course and was examined for a possible left leg injury.
The American skier, with a record 95 World Cup victories, was helped off the track when her left shoe stuck out of the snow.
“Mikaela Shiffrin was taken by ambulance to the clinic in Cortina and is currently being examined for an injury to her left leg. Initial analysis shows that the anterior cruciate ligament and posterior cruciate ligament appear to be intact. More details to come,” Shiffrin’s team said in a statement.
Shiffrin wrote on social media: “Thank you all for your support.”
U.S. Mikaela Shiffrin concentrates before a women's Alpine skiing World Cup downhill race in Cortina d'Ampezzo, Italy, January 26, 2024. AP Photo/Gabriele Facciotti
Shiffrin's arms flailed as she landed in a soft patch of snow at the top of the Olympia delle Tofane course, just before the narrow shot – or chute – that runs through two rock faces and is the most distinctive feature of the biggest women's races of the season. It then hit the net at high speed and bounced back into the snow.
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Doctors immediately attended to Shiffrin, and she eventually got up and limped away to get more care.
Former overall winner Federica Brignone also crashed shortly after racing resumed after a long delay due to Shiffrin's fall. But Brignone immediately got up and started skiing.
“I'm fine, although I have a few bruises here and there,” Brignone said, adding that it was one of the toughest tests the women have faced all season due to the extra terrain and rollovers on the course were.
“It was actually perfect,” said Brignone, who fell halfway up. “We've just gotten used to so many easy routes like wide open highways that when you find a difficult route you have to adapt. … I made a stupid mistake.”
Brignone also pointed out that there were too many races on the schedule.
Immediately after Brignone's fall, Olympic champion Corinne Suter stopped in the middle of the run, apparently injured. Suter sat there clutching her left knee.
Michelle Gisin, a two-time Olympic champion, also fell later but appeared to avoid serious injury.
In total, 12 of 52 starters completed the race, which was won by Stephanie Venier from Austria.
The descent took place in clear and sunny weather, but warm temperatures.
The Tofane course will host women's skiing at the 2026 Games and Shiffrin won four medals in four events at the 2021 World Championships in Cortina.
Shiffrin and Brignone became the fourth and fifth former overall World Cup champions to crash in the past two weeks following season-ending injuries to Alexis Pinturault, Aleksander Aamodt Kilde and Petra Vlhova.
Kilde is Shiffrin's friend and Vlhova is her biggest rival.
Shiffrin, who specializes in the technical disciplines of slalom and giant slalom, had not competed in a speed race since a super-G in Val d'Isere, France, more than a month ago. She also did not finish that race after missing a turnaround gate in a blind section, which caused problems for several other athletes.
But Shiffrin won the previous downhill event, which she competed in in December in St. Moritz, Switzerland.
Because Shiffrin hasn't been on the speed course for so long, she also struggled in Wednesday's only practice session, noting on Instagram that she experienced a few “scary moments” on the course.
A second training session planned for Thursday was canceled due to strong winds.
Still, almost immediately after her crash, Shiffrin took the time to write a message to her U.S. teammates who would still be taking part in the race. “It's all right ladies, surface is money, you got that!” Shiffrin said in the team's WhatsApp group.
Marta Bassino, an Italian skier who finished 11th, became nervous when she saw Shiffrin lying in the nets as she rode the chairlift to the start.
“It left quite an impression on me because she was in the nets and not moving,” Bassino said. “But then she stood up and that was a big relief.”
There was also relief in the crowded finish area as Shiffrin stood and the crowd let out a collective sigh.
“60 Minutes Sports” met Shiffrin in 2014, a month before she won her first gold medal at the Sochi Olympics. Correspondent Sharyn Alfonsi traveled to Burke Mountain Academy in East Burke, Vermont, the ski school that turned Shiffrin into the racer she is today.
In May, “CBS Evening News” anchor and editor-in-chief Norah O'Donnell spoke with Shiffrin about breaking world records, dealing with grief after the sudden loss of her father and inspiring the next generation of skiers. Watch the interview at the top of this story.
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