Mikaela Shiffrin was relatively injury-free until the last two seasons.
Those two seasons, though, oof.
Shiffrin missed six weeks in both the 2023-24 and 2024-25 World Cup seasons because of injuries suffered in crashes. The first injury ended her chances of winning the overall title in 2024, and the second has lessened the possibility of her racing the super-G at the Milano Cortina Olympics.
Here’s a look at Shiffrin’s injury history:
- November 2024: Suffered a puncture wound in her oblique muscles in a crash during the giant slalom at the World Cup in Killington, Vermont.
Shiffrin was fortunate because the puncture – she still isn’t certain what caused it – missed her colon by a millimeter. But she would need a second surgery in December 2024 because the wound wasn’t draining properly.
She returned to the World Cup circuit two months later and, two weeks later, paired with Breezy Johnson to win the team combined at the world championships. Two weeks after that, Shiffrin also got her 100th World Cup victory in Sestriere, Italy.
But Shiffrin experienced PTSD about the giant slalom for the rest of the season. She skipped the event at the world championships, and recorded a finish in one of her remaining three World Cup races in the discipline.
- January 2024: Sprained her left MCL, aggravated a bone bruise and suffered a high-ankle sprain in a crash during the World Cup downhill in Cortina, Italy, site of the 2026 Winter Olympics.
The high-ankle sprain proved to be more problematic during Shiffrin’s recovery. But after returning six weeks later, she won her final two races, allowing her to clinch the season slalom title.
- December 2015: Missed two months after tearing her right MCL when she crashed during the warm-up for a giant slalom race in Are, Sweden. She won three races upon her return.
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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: What is Mikaela Shiffrin’s injury history entering 2026 Olympics?
