Mikaela Shiffrin, the American skiing sensation, secured her 95th career win in the women's World Cup slalom event held in JASNA, Slovakia. This victory extends Shiffrin's record and comes on the heels of her main rival, Petra Vlhová, suffering a season-ending injury.

In an intense competition, Shiffrin triumphed over Croatian teenager Zrinka Ljutic by a mere 0.14 seconds. Anna Swenn Larsson of Sweden finished in third place, followed by Camille Rast of Switzerland in fourth. These were the only racers who managed to finish within a second of Shiffrin's remarkable time.

Addressing the enthusiastic Slovakian spectators, Shiffrin acknowledged the absence of Vlhová, declaring, "We're missing somebody really big today. We missed Petra a lot, so it's wonderful that you stayed."

Shiffrin remarked on the challenging second run, admitting, "It was not easy. Now I feel the energy has gone." However, she credited the support of the crowd and the excellent performance by Ljutic, stating, "I could hear you cheering for Zrinka, which was actually quite cool... I knew she put down an amazing run, and I had to push harder."

This victory marked Shiffrin's fifth slalom win of the season and her 58th win overall, setting a new World Cup record for both men and women. Additionally, Shiffrin established a new record for the most World Cup podium finishes in a single discipline, with 82 top-three results in slalom. She surpassed the previous record held by Swedish great Ingemar Stenmark, who had 81 podium finishes in the 1970s and '80s.

The absence of Vlhova, who crashed and suffered ligament damage in her right knee during Saturday's giant slalom race, was felt by Shiffrin. The two skiers have been dominant in women's slalom skiing for years, winning 14 of the past 15 races together, including all eight races this season. Shiffrin expressed her admiration for Vlhova, stating, "I have grown to love the battles with her... I really miss watching her ski today and having that battle."

With Vlhová out of the race, Shiffrin is now on the verge of clinching her eighth World Cup season title in slalom. She currently leads third-ranked Lena Duerr by a substantial 228 points, with only three events remaining. A race win earns 100 points, which means Shiffrin could secure the title at the next slalom event in Soldeu, Andorra on February 11.

In a unfortunate turn of events, Vlhova became the third former overall champion to have their season end prematurely this month, joining male skiers Alexis Pinturault and Aleksander Aamodt Kilde. Both men required surgery for injuries sustained during speed races in Wengen, Switzerland.