Russia

Full Speed Ahead for Olympic Alpine Skier Mikaela Shiffrin

The 22-year-old prodigy branching out ahead of February's Winter Olympics

Don't look now, but Mikaela Shiffrin is making good on a promise from four years ago to widen her Olympic resume.

Shiffrin caught the world's attention at the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia when she won gold in the slalom event, the youngest athlete ever to do so.

Now, 22, Shiffrin says the Sochi victory took the pressure off, and with the first Olympic gold out of the way, she can focus on winning many more medals in Pyeongchang and in other events as well.

Shiffrin's pre-Olympic run is going about as smooth as one can hope.

In just her fourth world cup downhill race in early December, she won gold, beating everyone including her childhood idol Lindsey Vonn. Shiffrin said she used to write book reports on Vonn in school.

"I'm still sort of star struck but I'm also, like ok, we have sort of a mutual respect for one another and we both just get the job done," said Shiffrin

Shiffrin is one of those Olympic prodigies who displayed natural talent from the time she strapped on skis.

"I was born in Vail, Colorado which is an epic ski town and both my parents were skiers, so they taught me and my brother who is two and a half years old, they taught us both how to ski", said Shiffrin.

Shiffrin won't be catching anyone by surprise at her second Olympics in less than two months as she is currently the top-ranked alpine skier in the world.

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