Mikaela Shifrin finishes 9th in Beijing and shows signs of bounce back

BEIJING -- Mikaela Shifrin showed signs of improvement after failing to complete her top events at this week's Beijing Olympics. She was ninth in super-G for women, well ahead of Lara Gut-Behrami from Switzerland, who was the gold medalist.

Mikaela Shifrin finishes 9th in Beijing and shows signs of bounce back

Gut-Behrami was the first to break through with a time of 1:13.51. It was a time that none of her 43 competitors could match.

Although Ninth was not Shiffrin's usual top finish, it was a significant step after a difficult start in Beijing.

Shiffrin smiled as she skied down the slope on Friday.

Shiffrin stated that she skied well and that it was a relief to be at the finish after having skied a good run. Although I wasn't skiing safely or otherwise, I did make it to the finish. That's a great feeling for me to know that I'm not completely abandoning all I knew about the sport.

Shiffrin was supposed to have the chance to win three Olympic gold medals in Alpine skiing at the Beijing Olympics. These expectations were met with great pressure.

Shiffrin fell and bailed out earlier this week. She skied for 11 seconds in her first giant-slalom qualifying race. She skied only five seconds into her qualifying run for her top event, the women's giant slalom. Two days later, she also went off-course. Shiffrin was seen sitting on the slope sideways for several minutes, her head in her lap and looking dejected after the slalom qualifying.

"There has been a lot of disappointment in the past week. Shiffrin stated that there were many emotions during the week.

Her third Olympics were also her first. She had to overcome a number of personal challenges. In 2020, her father unexpectedly died. She said that she often thought about retiring after her father's death.

Many were reminded of Simone Biles' struggles at last year's Tokyo Olympics by Shiffrin's problems. Biles, who was suffering from personal problems and enormous pressure, stunned the world by pulling out of many events. She stated that she needed to concentrate on her mental health during the Games.

The importance of mental health in athletes was also reaffirmed.

Shiffrin stated that she was surrounded by professional athletes and fans who supported her.

This allowed her to go back to the slopes. It seems that it was the right decision. Shiffrin stated, "Coming back out was the best thing to do.

She tweeted Friday morning, saying, "I cannot express how grateful I feel to have the chance to refocus on the new race, in this sport that I love so very much." Onward."

She could still compete in and win medals in other events, including downhill, Alpine combined, mixed team parallel.

Date Of Update: 12 February 2022, 10:36