Sixty years after naming the late Austrian Champion Egon Zimmermann, downhill Olympic champion in 1964, as first recipient of the “Skieur d’Or AIJS” award in occasion of the 1963 Arlberg Kandahar event at Chamonix, following great wins at major “Ski Classics” at Kitzbühel and Megève, members of the AIJS elected USA’s Mikaela Shiffrin as the 2023 “Skieur d’Or AIJS – Serge Lang Trophy”.
It’s the third time that the 28-year-old athlete from Colorado has been chosen by a short majority of members to be recognized as the “Skier of the Season” following her amazing achievements on the World Cup Tour and at the FIS World Championships in France. Already seven and four years ago, Mikaela was awarded that AIJS Crystal Trophy produced by Joska, in Bodenmais, Bavaria, several months after clinching her first overall World Cup titles at the Finals at Aspen and in Andorra in 2019 - with a total of 17 victories during the past months.
Last winter, Mikaela became the most successful racer ever on the circuit with her 88 victories scored since 2012 - two more than skiing legend Ingemar Stenmark. She received her fifth overall Crystal Globe at Soldeu a month after capturing her ninth gold medal at Meribel winning the giant slalom.
Shiffrin, entering now her 13th World Cup season, is now the only woman having been elected for a third time “Skieur d’Or AIJ”. Previous US recipients are Phil Mahre in 1983, Bode Miller in 2005 and Lindsey Vonn in 2009! Only Swiss Pirmin Zurbriggen and Austria’s Marcel Hirscher did “better” so far with four “wins”.
“Both Mikaela and Marco Odermatt were impressive last winter, alpine ski racing is very lucky to have such kind of leaders competing on the circuit, they really are remarkable not only on the snow but also in their normal life,” said AIJS President Patrick Lang about Shiffrin most recent success.
“They are also great examples of fairness and class outside of the slopes and strongly contribute to the promotion of snow sports around the globe,” Lang adds. “In fact, only a few votes separate them at the end of the election earlier this week. The journalists greatly appreciate her interviews and the time she dedicate to them after her races. To consider her as a role model in the ski world nearly is an understatement considering all her ideas, opinions or emotions she is sharing with them and the public in her social media activity”, Patrick Lang also said.
Half a dozen of other top-champions also received votes for the 2023 “AIJS Skieur d’Or” including Lucas Braathen and his teammate Aleksander Aamodt Kilde both from Norway or Switzerland’s Jasmine Flury, the FIS gold medal winner in downhill at Meribel last February-
Mikaela Shiffrin is receiving the beautiful Cristal Trophy organized by FIS and created by Joska at the end of the “FIS Forum Alpinum” held in the Oetztaler Arena at Soelden, Austria on Friday Oct. 27st in the afternoon. Members of AIJS wish her and all the other leaders a successful and enjoyable ski season.
Winners - “AIJS Skieur d’Or “ – Serge Lang Trophy 2010 – C. Janka (SUI) 2011 – I. Kostelic (CRO) 2012 – M. Hirscher (AUT) 2013 – T. Maze (SLO) 2014 – A. Fenninger (AUT) 2015 – A. Fenninger (AUT) & M. Hirscher (AUT) – 2016 & 2018 Marcel Hirscher - 2019 Mikaela Shiffrin (USA) – 2020 Federica Brignone (ITA) -- 2021 Alexis Pinturault (FRA) – 2022 Marco Odermatt (SUI