It's safe to say the start to the 2022 Winter Olympics did not go well for American skier Mikaela Shiffrin.
The 26-year-old from Colorado recorded a DNF on her first run of the women's giant slalom competition, knocking her out of the opportunity to defend her gold medal from 2018.
"I'm gonna reset and focus on what I can control for the slalom," Shiffrin said Monday after the race. "Still a long two weeks to go and I'm still forward to it.
"I'm sorry that that was the performance I did today but that also happens. I won't hide the disappointment but I'm also not going to dwell on it because that's not gonna help me at all."
The mindset is now on the slalom event, which Shiffrin already has a gold medal in. As an 18-year-old in 2014, Shiffrin finished at the top of the podium in her first Olympics. She just missed out on a medal in the event in 2018, coming in fourth.
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The three-time Olympian is racing in her first Games without her father, who passed away in February of 2020 unexpectedly due to a head injury. He was 65 years old.
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"He taught us so many valuable lessons but above everything else, he taught us the golden rule: be nice, think first," Shiffrin said. "This is something I will carry with me forever. He was the firm foundation of our family and we miss him terribly."
Shiffrin seriously considered retiring after his death, but elected to continue on with her alpine skiing career.
If Shiffrin were to medal tonight, she would join her boyfriend, Aleksander Aamodt Kilde of Norway, as a medalist in Beijing. The skier won bronze in the men's super-G competition.
While Shiffrin offers the U.S. the best chance at a medal, she isn't the lone American in the competition. Paula Moltzan, Katie Heinsien and A J Hurt will also be in the event.
The first run of the women's slalom is schedule for 9:15 p.m. EST tonight with the second and final run expected to take place at 12:45 a.m. EST on Wednesday morning.
