Shiffrin slides out as teenagers make impact

BEIJING: Double gold medalist Mikaela Shiffrin slid out in her bitterly disappointing opening race at the Beijing Olympics on Monday as two teenagers made their mark on their Games debuts.

Kamila Valieva, a 15-year-old Russian, created figure skating history by becoming the first woman to land a quadruple jump in Olympic competition — and not content with doing it once she did it again.

And Californian-born Chinese freestyle skier Eileen Gu, 18, held her nerve to seal a place in the final of the Big Air event on her Games bow.

Defending champion Shiffrin of the US was among the favorites to retain the women’s giant slalom title and win a third Olympic gold medal of her career, but in bright morning sunshine she made an error near the top of her first run and her race was over.

“There’s a huge disappointment, not even counting medals,” the 26-year-old said. “The day was finished basically before it even started.”

Shiffrin vowed to move on and quickly concentrate on Wednesday’s shorter slalom, a more technical event in which she is a four-time world champion.

With Shiffrin out, Sara Hector of Sweden won the giant slalom for her first individual victory at a major championship.

Shiffrin’s Norwegian boyfriend Aleksander Aamodt Kilde completed a miserable day for skiing’s golden couple when he could only finish fifth in the men’s downhill despite starting as favorite.

Switzerland’s Beat Feuz mastered a treacherous course to win the most prestigious race in Olympic skiing, improving on his bronze from Pyeongchang four years ago.

Experience counted as the 34-year-old clocked 1min 42.69sec to finish 0.10sec ahead of 41-year-old Frenchman Johan Clarey, who became the oldest man or woman in history to win an Olympic