Mikaela Shiffrin determined as ever as she looks to equal World Cup title record – ‘Why should I lose motivation?’

Mikaela Shiffrin is readying herself for what could be a monumental season on the slopes, as she closes in on the World Cup title record held by Annemarie Moser-Proell.

She could equal the Austrian’s record of six overall titles, a record set by Moser-Proell who dominated women’s World Cup Alpine skiing during the 1970s.

Having won her fifth overall World Cup title in the process, she is heading into the new season with her sights on a record-equalling sixth, which only Moser-Proell has managed to achieve.

“At the time, I wasn’t anywhere near a threat to any of the statistics and records and titles that she won and records she set and all of her stats,” Shiffrin recalled when asked about the first time she met the leading World Cup title leader, Moser-Proell.

“She said something to me like, ‘You just go for it and you’re going to pass me.’ It was just pretty striking to me that her mind was already there at a time when nobody else’s was. That was just kind of wild and a pretty cool experience.

“Motivation-wise, I wouldn’t say anything has changed. It’s a little bit of a funny place to be in. I wasn’t shooting to reset the record and then that happened last year and it was like, everyone was wondering if I was going to lose motivation.

“But I was like, why should I lose motivation after accomplishing something that I never truly set out to accomplish, as opposed to a fifth overall globe, which was something that I was kind of shooting for?

“If anything, that just makes me want to fight again this year and be in the running for the race for the overall globe again, because that’s always been one of my biggest goals. That motivation doesn’t change because it just kind of resets every year, and that’s where my head’s at.”

Shiffrin, who was named skier of the year by the federation of ski journalists on Friday, has gone through a period of change since last season.

Shiffrin plans to compete in additional events this season, including the downhill and super-G, because of the lack of World Championship or Olympic competition this year.

She hopes for a positive start to the season in Soelden on Saturday despite still recovering from an illness suffered during the latest training camp in Chile, but will take a steady approach to the weekend’s action.

“I’m not as worried about starting the season off as strong as I can be,” she said. “I feel like it’s OK to build into my highest level of skiing throughout these first weeks of competition.

“I think there was a lot that I learned from last season. Kind of building into the season. This year I’m trying to take a little bit more of an approach of giving myself time to build into my best form.

“And if I feel amazing on Saturday, I’ll take it. I’m not going to complain about that. But getting into the race season, it’s always a strange feeling.

“It’s like learning how to walk again, or learning how to swim again.”