Mikaela Shiffrin wins Aspen World Cup slalom

Mikaela Shiffrin atoned for her late fall in Friday’s FIS Alpine Skiing World Cup giant slalom with a dominant victory 24 hours later in the slalom.

That day begun like on Saturday with ideal weather and snow conditions and Mikaela Shiffrin dominating her rivals in the first slalom run. “She has the support from the public and, yeah, she’s in another class”, said Strachova, who’s won slalom races on this course in 2008 and ’09.

Shiffrin has a chance to gain more points in an overall race that could very well come down to her and Vonn.

On Saturday she prevailed by a 3.07 seconds, a record margin for women’s World Cup slalom. It was a mark that had stood since 1968.

The 31-year-old, who said that kind of error had never happened to her before, only entered the giant slalom in Aspen. It’s the longest streak in slalom by a female skier since Marlies Schild of Austria captured five straight in 2011-12.

Slovakian Veronika Velez Zuzulova was second, 3.07 seconds behind, with Sweden’s Frida Hansdotter third in 1:43.07.

“I know this hill really well now”, Shiffrin said.

Shiffrin was fastest in the sun-soaked first run as well as the flat-light second run after experiencing the frustration of an agonizing loss in Friday’s giant slalom, when she fell two gates from the finish while in the lead. There are plenty of races left to close the gap. “We’ll see. We will find a way to catch her”.

After being asked whether she demonstrated her best skiing this weekend, Shiffrin’s response may strike fear into the hearts of those hoping to steal a slalom victory of their own this season. “There wasn’t a lot of time between yesterday’s race (and Sunday) to regroup”. “After the first run… if I was in their position I’d think there’s no way (to win)”.

“The course wasn’t that hard, actually”, she said. She made a miscalculation up top, but practices for those sorts of situations. “To be honest I am a bit perplexed”.

Shiffrin has always conducted herself with humility, but on this occasion it seemed as if she was humbled by the magnitude of her own accomplishment.

“For sure, I will watch what she is doing”, Hansdotter said. “I was nervous, but I still attacked”, Shiffrin said. That’s Lindsey Vonn’s territory.

“I don’t know if I’ve ever seen a slalom won by three seconds”, McKinney said in the crowd before the record was announced. I thought, you have to attack today-don’t go any slower, try to pick it up.