Mikaela Shiffrin Skiis Out in Slalom Again - Someone please explain what's going on?

Wait, what's your question?

Your subject line seems to be suggest asking why she missed the gate, then your first question is about whether there is a letsrun for skiing?

THEN, you explain how she explained seemingly all the questions that you had. So exactly what questions do you need answered?

There is another thread going but that one was started by some loser that seemed to be delighting in her struggles for some strange reason.

Skiing is one of the most difficult disciplines in all of sports and she just seems to be going through a rough time. Whatever it is, I’m sure she’ll get through it. Her timing of the rough patch, during the Olympics, really does suck. All skiers go through it from time to time but she seems to be a little worse than others. A lot of skiing is mental and once she messed up in her first event, it all probably kept playing with her mind. Also, I have no idea if the recent death of her father has played a part in her struggles.

She will be back and just as strong as ever.

My guess is, that the preparation and the surface of the ski course is pretty bad.

Preparing a ski course is an art form. You have to try to get similar conditions for a lot of skiers. The Chinese course is all artificial snow, there is no snow on any mountain in these Olympic Winter Games.
That should be problem #1.

#2 might be the death of Mikaelas father. That might throw her of when she needs him.

The ski manager I worked with (I used to live in the same valley) said years ago that Mikaela was way more talented than Lindsey Vonn and Vonn was one of the best. This was confirmed recently when Bode Miller said that Mikaela is the best skier he has seen in his lifetime.

I'm more curious as to the coaching situation at USA skiing. Do they all keep their private coaches or is there an overarching USA coaching apparatus?

I see this as a coaching/development failure of epic proportions, not just Shiffin, aside from the silver in the Super G the whole USA team performed far below expectations.

USA skiing must have changed a lot from the Bode Miller days and what they changed stinks.

In the most recent DNF, she appears to have hooked the gate, that is one ski went on the wrong side of the pole.  This is just down to taking a very aggressive line and off line by a couple inches.

The previous two DNFs she slid out with the downhill ski, so a hard, slick, bumpy course and visibility issues are likely contributors.

After the first crash it's hard not to dwell on details and once one starts being overly conscious of movements that should be reflexive, bad things can happen.  The net is bad luck affecting confidence and begetting more bad luck.

Ester Ledecka was 5th in the combined. I obviously wanted Mikaela to win the gold but was also pulling for Ledecka. She already won a gold in the snowboarding parallel giant slalom and is still the only woman to have ever won a gold in two different sports in the Winter Olympics after she won the snowboarding parallel giant slalom and the super-g in the 2018 Olympics. She’s also my crush so another reason I wanted her to do well.

It's funny to see near universal support for Shiffrin on here after near universal criticism of Biles and Richardson last summer. My, my, my!

This is like asking why doesn’t Tiger Woods dominate his entire life. We are talking about the second most decorated alpine skier of all time. 6 world championship golds, 2 Olympic golds and a silver. 73 World Cup wins.

Even the best in the world go through bad patches. This just happens to be front and center because NBC decided she needed to be the face of the Olympics this year.

Yes. Newschoolers.com

it is primarily focused to park skiing though.

Shiffrin was struggling with her form coming into the OGs.  I think she needs a full season of competition to really be at her best.  

I also think that the pressure got to her.  She is 26 and may be thinking about retirement.  So, this may potentially be her last OGs.  Add to that being the face of the OGs for the US, losing her father, a difficult course with all artificial snow and the COVID bubble and it is understandable that it was just too much for her to handle.  Plenty of big names have taken a DNF on the slopes in China this year.  Even with optimal conditions, the medal contenders push it right up to the edge.  Shiffrin just couldn't overcome the first DNF and it turned into the yips for her.

Simone Biles allover 2.0?

She choked. 

There are a ton of reasons this was a particularly challenging for her (weird course, family issues, time off) but the reality is she is considered by many to be the GOAT. That is how high the bar is. That is her standard she is held to. And judging by the standard, she choked. 

She cracked under pressure

it happens

not everyone has what it takes

Don’t try to make this a racial issue, dbag. If you say that you’re not, you’re being disingenuous.
There are plenty here that are delighting in Shiffrin’s struggles. I’m not sure why but those people are losers.
Richardson brought her problems on herself. She’s an incredible talent and I would like to see her do well but until she tones down her rhetoric, she’s hard to like. Her situation is not at all like Shiffrin’s.
There were losers her that bagged on Biles last year. Her struggles seem more in line with what Shiffrin is going through. She’s a class act and will be back.

Even the best can have a streak of bad days at precisely the wrong time.

When a person wins 3 Olympic medals, does that person have anything more to prove ?