Shiffrin, Killington make triumphant returns to the World Cup in Vermont

After a one-year hiatus. the Killington Cup returned to Vermont. (Eric Wilbur)

KILLINGTON, Vt. — Mikaela Shiffrin said that she had begun to take the Killington Cup for granted. 

In fact, the last time the race was held in 2019, Shiffrin admitted that it felt like the weight of the world was on her shoulders. At 24 years old, the product of Burke Mountain Academy had become the poster child for the World Cup’s popular stop in Vermont. She had become the main attraction that brought tens of thousands to the base of Superstar every November. There’s a lot of responsibility in that, a chore that, Shiffrin, said can be overwhelming. 

“And then, I actually look at the crowd.”

Both Shiffrin and the Killington crowd made triumphant returns Sunday, as Shiffrin took the top spot in the slalom competition, one day after the giant slalom had to be canceled due to weather. 

The win gives the 26-year-old 46 wins in slalom, tying Ingemar Stenmark (giant slalom) for most wins in a single discipline. It also gives her 71 overall World Cup victories, now only 11 behind Stenmark’s record 82 victories. 

“I won’t say it’s not meaningful,” Shiffrin said. “It certainly is, but I’m trying not to focus on those numbers. The closer I get to these marks, it’s hard not to think about it, and want that. I think any person would want to have those records that are named, but everybody on the mountain today wants to win, and just wanting it is not enough to actually do it. Wanting it doesn’t do anything for you to actually do the work or ski well enough to make that happen.”

One year after the pandemic interrupted the annual event, Shiffrin made sure the thousands who showed up Sunday went home remembering the thrill of the ski racing. 

“The crowd here is so amazing and fair, pure ski racing lovers,” Shiffrin said. “That’s something we really missed and I don’t want to take it for granted again. Because not getting it last year reminded me of how lucky we are to have these World Cup races here and to be able to race in front of a crowd like this.” 

After the first run, Shiffrin ran .20 seconds behind rival Petra Vlhova. She wound up beating Vlhova, the overall world champion by .75 seconds. The Slovakian made an error that she quickly recovered from at the top of her second run. That was the only advantage that Shiffrin would need. 

Shiffrin has now won all five World Cup slalom races in Killington.

Eric Wilbur can be reached at [email protected].