Mikaela Shiffrin is returning to the World Cup circuit.
Almost nine weeks after a crash in Killington, Vermont, left her with a deep gash in her oblique muscles, the all-time leader in World Cup victories will compete Thursday in a slalom race in Courchevel, France. It’s the final World Cup race before the world championships Feb. 4-16 in Saalbach, Austria.
Shiffrin’s next World Cup win will be her 100th, a mark that is unlikely to be matched. But when Shiffrin announced her return last week, she cautioned that she still isn’t 100% and will still be dealing with ‘remnants’ of the injury for the rest of the season.
‘But it’s not painful. My muscles are working again. I’ve been able to get my strength built back up. I’m in a really good place physically,’ Shiffrin said in an interview with the TODAY show. ‘ … (But) I haven’t really skied (since Killington). I’m coming back into competitions with the best athletes in the world, with the World Cup athletes, and trying to hold my own against that. They’ve been skiing and are in totally top form, and I’m coming back from ripping my oblique in half.’
Here’s what to know about Shiffrin’s return:
When is Mikaela Shiffrin racing again?
Shiffrin will return to the World Cup circuit on Thursday, with a slalom race under the lights in Courchevel, France.
There are two runs in slalom races, and the first begins at 11 a.m. Eastern (5 p.m. in France) and the second at 2 p.m. Eastern (8 p.m. in France). Shiffrin drew the sixth spot for the first run — the best skiers go first in the first run — so be watching the stream by 11:05 a.m. if you want to see her live.
The second run is done in reverse order of the first run’s finish, so Shiffrin is likely to be one of the last skiers. To be safe, have the stream up by 2:30 p.m.
How can I watch?
The race will be streamed on skiandsnowboard.live in the United States.
How has Shiffrin done this season?
Great! Until she was impaled.
Shiffrin had won two of her first three starts, both slalom races. The second win was her 99th World Cup victory, extending her record, and put her in contention for both the overall title and the slalom crown.
But missing almost nine weeks has dropped her way back in the standings. She is now 18th in the overall and ranks ninth in the slalom standings.