Mikaela Shiffrin Shares Powerful Message About Defeat: "The Girl Who Failed . . . Could Also Fly"

By Jenny Sugar

With disqualifications in the slalom and the giant slalom in the 2022 Olympics, US alpine skier Mikaela Shiffrin headed into the super-G event feeling excited and positive. Unfortunately, she didn't medal, but she had a solid run, skiing with a time of 1:14:34, just 0.79 seconds behind the winner. This earned her ninth place out 44 women.

"I proved to myself that I can still trust my instincts a bit, and that's really, really huge," the 26-year-old said after the race, according to NBC. "And for all the people who have been sending me support, I can only say: Thank you." She has felt overwhelmed by the kindness people have shown her after "severely underperforming." "I never would have expected that," Shiffrin said on NBC's live broadcast. "It's the most surprising thing of my Olympic experience is how kind people have been in the face of my failure." And although she feels sorry for her failure, she said, "I also was trying, and I'm proud of that."

This morning, Shiffrin shared a message to her supporters. "The girl who failed . . . could also fly," she wrote on Instagram. "It's wonderful to train and compete alongside all of these courageous and incredible women, who have overcome so much in their life, just to get here. But being here can really hurt too. There's a lot of disappointment and heartbreak going around in the finish area, but there's also a lot of support."

Shiffrin can compete in two more events in Beijing: the downhill and the alpine combined. "It's a lot to digest in just one event . . . let alone the whole rollercoaster ride of an entire Olympics," Shiffrin wrote. "Wellllll, guess I better hang on tight to the coaster cause we have plenty still to come. First DH training starts tomorrow!"

She added: "Sending my love to those who are feeling that striking hurt of defeat . . . only let it beat you down for a little bit, and then you stand up again and throw a few punches back. . . . Today was a good day, so I'm just gonna let it be that." We're looking forward to seeing her race on Monday, Feb. 14, at 10 p.m. ET.