- - Italy's Federica Brignone fastest among early racers in women's giant slalom. Shiffrin sits seventh

The February 15, 2026 at 4:18 AM

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1 / 4Milan Cortina Olympics Alpine SkiingItaly's Federica Brignone competes during an alpine ski, women's giant slalom race, at the 2026 Winter Olympics, in Cortina d'Ampezzo, Italy, Sunday, Feb. 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)

CORTINA D'AMPEZZO, Italy (AP) — Federica Brignone of Italy is halfway to a second gold at the Milan Cortina Olympics.

The 35-year-old, who won the first Olympic gold of her long career by claiming the super-G last week, was easily the fastest among the early competitors in the women's alpine giant slalom on Sunday in Tofane. American star Mikaela Shiffrin, looking for her first Olympic medal in eight years, sits seventh, just over a second back.

Brignone was the world champion in the GS last year, but that was before sustaining a broken left leg in March that required surgery, a handful of screws to repair and left her unable to walk for weeks, Brignone breezed through the 51-gate course in 1:03.23 to give her a sizable lead over the crowded field behind her.

Lena Duerr of Germany is second, 0.34 behind Brignone, whose four Olympic medals are tied for the most by an Italian women in alpine racing history. Brignone's teammate Sofia Goggia is third, 0.46 back.

There's a large group giving chase. Defending Olympic champion Sara Hector of Sweden, Thea Louise Stjernesund of Norway and Lara Colturi of Albania all posted the fourth-fastest time at 1:03.97.

Running in pristine conditions, Stjernesund set the pace as the first one out of the starting gate. Hector, going next, matched her time exactly. Colturi, 10th among the starters, drew a roar from the crowd when her time flashed and matched Hector and Stjernsund's down to the hundredth of a second.

Shiffrin, the 2018 Olympic champion in this event, entered Sunday trying to bounce back after a disappointing fourth place finish in the combined earlier in the Games, when her sluggish slalom run dropped Shiffrin and teammate and reigning Olympic downhill champion Breezy Johnson from first to fourth.

Shiffrin promised she would learn from her slalom run in the combined. While she was solid and never came close to danger, she also couldn't quite find the speed of the leaders. None of her four timing splits ranked in the top four among early competitors.

Even a spectacular run might not have been enough to catch the electrifying Brignone. She had the second fastest-time in the first segment, the fastest in the second and the second-fastest in the fourth.

Brignone, who needed 16 years to win her first Olympic gold after making her debut at the 2010 Games in Vancouver, may need to wait just a few days to earn her second.

Julia Scheib, the current World Cup leader in giant slalom this season, sat 11th and isn't optimistic anyone can catch Brignone.

“Perfect skiing,” Scheib said. “I mean she likes the snow. I noticed and it was not a huge surprise.”

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AP Olympics: https://apnews.com/hub/milan-cortina-2026-winter-olympics

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