Shiffrin left ‘low’ but US finally wins gold in Beijing

BEIJING: US ski star Mikaela Shiffrin’s Beijing Olympics threatened to turn into a winter nightmare but there was long-awaited redemption for snowboarder Lindsey Jacobellis as she won Team USA’s first gold of the Games on Wednesday.

Six gold medals were up for grabs on the fifth day of full competition in the Chinese capital, but Shiffrin’s wait goes on in her faltering pursuit of a career third Olympic gold in alpine skiing.

The 26-year-old made a shock early exit from the giant slalom on Monday and with the pressure on, suffered the same fate in the slalom, with rival Petra Vlhova of Slovakia taking full advantage.

Vlhova produced a stunning second leg to clock a combined total of 1min 44.98sec over the two runs and edge Austria’s reigning world champion Katharina Liensberger into silver by eight-hundredths of a second.

In stark contrast, Shiffrin slid wide after just a handful of gates before skiing out in the first leg, then plonked herself down on the snow, head in hands.

The American said she felt “pretty awful,” although added: “But it won’t feel awful for ever. I just feel pretty low right now.”

Shiffrin will compete in three more individual events in Beijing, with the super-G on Friday, followed by the downhill on Tuesday and alpine combined on February 17.

Snowboard cross rider Jacobellis said her infamous fall that cost her the Olympic title in 2006 had “kept her hungry” as she finally got the United States on the gold-medal board.

Jacobellis was comfortably in the lead in the final at the 2006 Turin Olympics when she attempted to “style out” her last jump — and fell just before the finish line, coming second.

“(People) can keep talking about (2006) all they want because it really shaped me into the