US star Mikaela Shiffrin was kept waiting for the overall women’s World Cup crown by the slimmest of margins Thursday after Liechtenstein’s Tina Weirather captured the World Cup women’s Super-G crown.
Weirather overtook Super-G points leader Ilka Stuhec of Slovenia for the discipline season title by winning the campaign’s final race in 1:11.66 with Stuhec second, .35 of a second behind but edging Italy’s Federica Brignone by .01 to barely sustain her overall title chances.
Shiffrin, with 11 World Cup victories this season, now leads Stuhec 1,523-1,325 with two races and 200 possible points remaining from the World Cup Final at Aspen.
Even though she failed to clinch the crown, a coronation is all but certain at the weekend with Shiffrin’s specialties, the slalom and giant slalom, to be raced. Stuhec would need to win both and have Shiffrin fall twice to overtake her for the overall title.
Stuhec, who clinched the season downhill title with a victory Wednesday in that discipline, entered the season’s last Super-G race leading Weirather by 15 points.
Weirather started fifth but took the lead with a run of 1:11.66. Stuhec started seventh, three of the six prior races having failed to finish the course, and was within .09 of Weirather on the last two intervals before fading at the finish to close on 1:12.01.
The times stood to top the podium, giving Weirather a 435-430 edge in the final Super-G standings, and building drama for the last 14 racers. Had any one of them beaten Stuhec’s time, the title would have gone to Shiffrin.
Three rivals had serious chances at outpacing her. Italy’s Sofia Goggia was on track to take second late in her run but failed to finish. Brignone was ahead on time after the last interval but slowed late and just missed on 1:12.02.
Lindsey Vonn could have clinched the crown for her teammate by passing Stuhec and was on pace to do it, .18 behind Weirather at the second interval, but also failed to finish.
Shiffrin, who has already sealed her fourth series slalom crown in five years, is poised to become only the fifth American to win an overall title after Phil Mahre, Tamara McKinney, Bode Miller and Vonn.
Shiffrin, who turned 22 on Monday and lives in nearby Vail, would be the youngest World Cup overall champion since Croatia’s Janica Kostelic in 2003.
Since her 2013 World Cup debut, Shiffrin has ruled slalom with world titles in 2013, 2015 and 2017 and 2014 Winter Olympic gold at Sochi.
Shiffrin could surpass Vonn’s record of 12 wins in a season with a weekend sweep. Shiffrin has the most wins of any man or woman in World Cup races this season with 11 — seven slalom triumphs, three more in giant slaloms plus a super combined victory.
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