Lindsey Vonn ‘Really Happy for Mikaela’ as Shiffrin Ties With Her for World Cup Victories

SnowBrains | | Post Tag for Industry NewsIndustry News
Mikaela after her 82nd win. Credit: AP

Following Mikaela Shiffrin’s 82nd World Cup Victory over the weekend that brought her level with Lindsey Vonn as the best female skier ever, Vonn responded with a statement saying she is happy for Mikaela and expects her to go on and not only surpass her own record but Ingemar Stenmark’s all-time record of 86 victories and beyond.

Lindsey’s full message is below:

Iโ€™m really happy for Mikaela.

Records are meant to be broken and itโ€™s a sign of progress. And if anyone is to break my record, Iโ€™m really happy that itโ€™s an American.

Sheโ€™s going to continue pushing the limits and continue to inspire other Americans. There were a lot of women who paved the way for me. And now itโ€™s her turn to pave the way for the next generation.

Itโ€™s pretty impressive that the top two female skiers of all time are Americans in a sport historically dominated by Europeans. Weโ€™re 20 wins ahead of the next woman (Annemarie Moser-Prรถll of Austria with 62 wins), which is a substantial margin. So itโ€™s not even really close. It just speaks for our country as a whole and what weโ€™re capable of doing.

Ski racing might not be as popular as it used to be. Snowboarding and other freestyle sports have gained popularity. So Mikaela breaking the record now is really great for the sport. I hope that it generates a lot of kids getting into the sport. Hopefully, sheโ€™ll inspire the next American and hopefully Americans will stand 1-2-3 on the all-time list.

Weโ€™ve definitely had a very different journey to 82. Sheโ€™s the absolute perfect technical skier and has also won in the speed disciplines. I was the downhiller who also had wins in the technical races. I unfortunately had many, many injuries, and my road was quite a bit longer. But sheโ€™s at an incredible pace to not just reach 82 but go well, well beyond that.

Catching Ingemar Stenmarkโ€™s menโ€™s mark of 86 wins was always the ultimate goal for me, but with the injuries I sustained it just wasnโ€™t possible. For her, the skyโ€™s the limit. I donโ€™t think that Stenmark is necessarily the benchmark. Sheโ€™s going to set the new standard and weโ€™ll just have to wait and see how high sheโ€™s able to go.

I knew from the very beginning that she would be the one to break all the records. But to be able to do it at such a young age is really impressive.

And I donโ€™t think Mikaela should vary too much from her current approach. Not racing more speed events has done her well because sheโ€™s been able to stay injury free. Her plans are working pretty well. So I would probably just stick to what sheโ€™s been doing.

I remember when I first met Mikaela when we were training in Hinterreit (Austria) and she was starting out. I came up to her and I said, โ€œWelcome to the team.โ€ And I know that it can be a little intimidating at first because she was so young. But I said, โ€œIโ€™m always here if you ever need anything.โ€ She was with her mom and she seemed really happy and excited to be with the team. I remember it perfectly.

We donโ€™t get in touch that often, but I reached out to her when her dad passed away and she reached out to me when my mom recently passed away, which I really appreciated. I wrote her for New Yearโ€™s and congratulated her on Semmering (Shiffrin won three straight races in the Austrian resort last month) and I told her, โ€œIโ€™m looking forward to watching you break all the records.โ€

Iโ€™ll be watching from afar, though. This is her moment to savor, and Iโ€™ll be cheering from the sidelines, like all ski racing fans.

Lindsey Vonn or Mikaela Shiffrin?
Mikaela Shiffrin and Lindsey Vonn are the most decorated female ski racers of the 21st century. — Credit: TeamUSA News

Related Articles

Got an opinion? Let us know...