World Cup skiing opens with Mikaela Shiffrin nearing 100 wins and notable comebacks

A series of high-profile crashes in the previous alpine skiing season throws a shadow over the start of the new World Cup campaign this weekend, as many of the injured skiers have not recovered yet.

Former overall champions Alexis Pinturault and Petra Vlhova have postponed their comebacks until December, Austrian all-rounder Marco Schwarz's return is still undetermined, and Norwegian standout Aleksander Aamodt Kilde will even sit out the entire season.

Still, two giant slaloms on a glacier in Soelden Austria, with the women racing on Saturday and the men on Sunday, will open a pre-Olympic season that offers ski racing fans a lot to look forward to.

American star Mikaela Shiffrin needs three more victories to get her record-extending 100th career World Cup win; Marco Odermatt eyes his fourth straight overall championship; and Lucas Pinheiro Braathen and Marcel Hirscher return, coming out of retirement and switching allegiances to Brazil and the Netherlands, respectively.

Usually not keeping a close eye on the numbers and stats behind her achievements, Shiffrin admits approaching win No. 100 does mean a lot to her.

"Bringing energy to the sport is never a bad thing, whether you want to talk about records or statistics. I'm feeling right now energized by people bringing up 100. I think it's incredible people are still following along this journey and excited about it," the two-time Olympic champion said.

Apart from adding to her tally of 97 wins, Shiffrin is expected to be among the main contenders for the overall championship again, even though she will skip the downhills this season.

Having won the big globe five times, Shiffrin led the standings by 340 points in January when a crash on the 2026 Olympic downhill course in