Mikaela Shiffrin plans more speed races in new season, including Lake Louise opener

Mikaela Shiffrin is planning a return to hurry racing within the alpine snowboarding World Cup season, after lowering her schedule nearly solely to slalom and big slalom final yr.

The American two-time Olympic champion stated on Thursday she was eyeing a begin on the first pace races of the season: Two downhills and a super-G in Lake Louise, Alberta, in early December.

“For my entire profession my focus will at all times be tech, however I really like pace, and I really like Lake Louise particularly, so that’s within the plan proper now,” Shiffrin stated. “I in all probability received’t be at each single pace race. It’s simply not likely attainable.”

Shiffrin’s first profession win in a pace race got here within the Lake Louise downhill in 2017, and she or he added a super-G victory on the similar resort the next yr.

The brand new season, which incorporates the Beijing Olympics in February, begins on Oct. 23 with the normal big slalom on a glacier in Sölden, Austria.

Shiffrin triumphed within the season opener in 2014 for one among her 69 World Cup wins.

Shiffrin returned final November after a 10-month break from racing following the demise of her father, the coronavirus outbreak, and a again damage.

She competed solely within the technical occasions, besides on the world championships in Cortina d’Ampezzo, Italy, in February, when she received gold in alpine mixed and bronze in super-G.

“This final season was a bit … form of comeback, nearly. And I actually had sufficient to deal with in slalom and GS,” stated Shiffrin, who was talking in Austria at a digital media occasion of her gear provider, Atomic.

“I really feel like there’s a million issues I can enhance, particularly after final season: The timing within the gates, in slalom maintaining with my quickness and agility, there was a conditioning side to it as nicely. I really feel like every part may very well be on the next degree.”

The three-time total World Cup champion used the offseason to work on numerous points of her snowboarding in all alpine disciplines.

“I don’t really feel any lack of issues I can enhance however I assume generally it’s good to take a step again and say, ‘The extent is fairly good,’” she stated.