Skiing superstar Mikaela Shiffrin misses medal in her best event in stunning finish

• Mikaela Shiffrin didn’t medal in the slalom, her best event, at the Winter Olympics.
• Shiffrin entered the Olympics with the hopes of winning five medals, but that hope has been dashed.
• Schedule has played a major factor, as Shiffrin dropped out of the super-G on Saturday to avoid competing in three straight events. She may have also been thrown off by winning gold in the giant slalom on Thursday.

Mikaela Shiffrin failed to medal in the slalom, her best event, Friday at the Winter Olympics.

The result was a stunner as Shiffrin entered the Olympics as the reigning gold medal winner in the event and the reigning world champion.

Shiffrin had an uneven first run on Friday in Pyeongchang, reportedly throwing up before the race. In her second run, Shiffrin didn’t appear to make any major mistakes, but toward the end of her run, fell off the gold-medal pace and slipped into second place.

Shiffrin then saw the final two skiers in the event pass her, knocking her off the podium altogether.

Friday’s disappointment continued what’s been a somewhat turbulent Olympics for Shiffrin. Shiffrin’s schedule was thrown out of whack when the first two slalom events were postponed because of weather. She won gold in the giant slalom on Thursday, but according to USA Today’s Nancy Armour, the schedule may have thrown off Shiffrin. According to Armour, Shiffrin went to sleep late on Thursday because she had to go attend the separate medal ceremony after winning the slalom.

Additionally, the schedule will hurt Shiffrin’s medal count. Shiffrin dropped out of the super-G program scheduled for Saturday because she didn’t want to compete in three straight events. Shiffrin entered the games hoping for five medals. To the surprise of many, she’ll take home three at the most now.