Mikaela Shiffrin wins World Cup overall title for record-tying 6th time; it's distinct from the rest

That Mikaela Shiffrin clinched her record-tying sixth World Cup overall title — the biggest annual prize in ski racing — in a giant slalom of all events is a reminder of what she overcame to claim the big crystal globe for the first time since 2023. Shiffrin wrapped up the title by placing in the top 15 in the last race of the 37-race World Cup campaign on Wednesday in Hafjell, Norway. She edged German Emma Aicher in total points in the first time the women's overall came down to the last race of the season since 2015.

Shiffrin all but wrapped up the overall by winning Tuesday's slalom — her 110th World Cup victory. Aicher needed to win Wednesday's GS and have Shiffrin finish outside the top 15. The standings take into account results across downhill (which Shiffrin hasn't raced in two years), super-G (Shiffrin did three of eight races this season, best finish 22nd), giant slalom (raced all 10, best finish 3rd going into Wednesday) and slalom (won nine of 10 races).

Aicher, a 22-year-old raised in her mom's native Sweden, is the only woman or man who skis all four race disciplines at a high level. She is a throwback in a time of skiers increasingly narrowing focus to two or three disciplines. She also looks like an overall threat for years to come.

At the start of 2025, Aicher's best career World Cup finish was fifth. Going into Wednesday, she placed fifth or better in 16 races, including in nine of 11 after the Olympics. “There’s a new era of the greatest overall skier, and I’m so excited to watch what she does in the future," Shiffrin said Tuesday.