Winter Olympics 2022: 'Today is my favourite memory' - Mikaela Shiffrin 'not disappointed' despite missing out on medal

ByHarry Latham Coyle

Updated 20/02/2022 at 09:16 GMT

One of the great technical skiers of all-time, Mikaela Shiffrin ended her Beijing 2022 campaign without a medal after the USA missed out to Norway in the small final of the mixed team parallel. Shiffrin had changed her departure date to remain in China and join her teammates, and insisted that it was the "best possible way" to end a disappointing Winter Olympics, even after finishing fourth.

Mikaela Shiffrin described competing in the mixed team parallel event as the "best possible way" to end Beijing 2022 despite again missing out on a medal.

Shiffrin had failed to finish in any of her preferred individual events, with a ninth place in the Super-G her best result.

The 26-year-old shifted her travel plans to remain in China for the final event of the alpine skiing programme, hoping that a medal may be won alongside her teammates in the condensed, head-to-head format.

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However Shiffrin was again a little off her brilliant best as the USA lost the bronze medal small final to Norway, with Austria securing gold ahead of Germany in a tight big final.

"I am not disappointed," Shiffrin told reporters after concluding her 2022 Winter Olympics.

"I have had a lot of disappointing moments at these Games; today is not one of them.

"Today is my favourite memory.

"This was the best possible way that I could imagine ending the Games, skiing with such strong teammates."

Shiffrin already had three Olympic medals coming into the Beijing Winter Olympics, securing a gold in the slalom on debut at Sochi 2014 before adding a gold (giant slalom) and silver (combined) four years later.

The record 47-time World Cup slalom winner appeared to struggle to get to grips with the snow at the Yanqing National Alpine Skiing Centre, unable to attack the course with the accuracy required to remain in contention.

The parallel event allows little room for error regardless of conditions, and the skiers' runs were further complicated by a stiff wind that had caused the postponement of yesterday's planned proceedings on the Yanqing slope.

Shiffrin was full of praise for the rest of the American quartet (Paula Moltzan, River Radamus and Tommy Ford).

‘Courageous’ – Shiffrin with ‘absolute brilliance’ despite tough challenge

"There is so much about this event that just hangs in the balance, and today with wind, as well, there's just too much that you have to hope for good karma or good luck or whatever," Shiffrin said.

"You just hope to do the very best you can and control the things you can, and these guys did very top level of skiing, and we were that close to getting a medal today; and that is a testament to the work everybody has done this entire time, years leading up to these Games. It's not just today."

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The Olympic Games will return with Paris 2024, live on Eurosport and discovery+.

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