AILSA CHANG, HOST:
Joy and sweet redemption today for U.S. alpine skier Mikaela Shiffrin at the Winter Olympics. Shiffrin finally medaled, winning gold and thereby breaking a long, agonizing streak of Olympic losses. Also, in the Italian Alps, the U.S. men's cross-country team picked up a historic silver medal. NPR's Brian Mann is in Cortina d'Ampezzo and joins us now. Hi, Brian.
BRIAN MANN, BYLINE: Hi, Ailsa.
CHANG: So I understand that you were at the finish line when Shiffrin won. What was that like?
MANN: This was extraordinary. This was Shiffrin back at her best. In her first run, it was a confident, aggressive line. It was her best event and really showed. She carved out a lead of nearly a second. That's big in this event. Then in her second and final run, she didn't let up. She expanded her lead, winning this gold medal decisively. And you could see the joy and relief on her face. Here she is talking after the medal ceremony.
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MIKAELA SHIFFRIN: I have a challenged relationship with racing. But when I get to do it like this today, then that was wonderful.
MANN: Shiffrin already had 108 World Cup races, Ailsa. That's more than any other alpine skier. Now with these three gold medals, it's the most of any U.S. alpine skier in history.
CHANG: Wow, what an incredible moment. I mean, and all of this comes after - what? - eight straight losses in the Olympics, going back to the Beijing Games in 2022. What did Shiffrin say about this whole arduous journey back to the podium?
MANN: Yeah, she talked really deeply about this. And I want to give some context here. Shiffrin lost a bunch of Olympic races. That obviously meant more and more pressure. She also suffered a devastating crash while racing in 2024 that left her seriously injured with PTSD. But she also lost her father, who died in 2020. And healing from that loss, that's what she focused on today after this win.
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SHIFFRIN: Everything in life that you do after you lose someone you love is like being born again. And I still have so many moments where I resist this. I don't want to be in life without my dad. Maybe today was the first time that I could actually accept this, like, reality - and instead of thinking I would be going in this moment without him, to take the moment to be silent with him.
MANN: Yeah, sometimes sport is just sport, Ailsa, but sometimes it feels a lot bigger. And that was the case today for Mikaela Shiffrin and this Olympic gold medal win.
CHANG: Indeed. Well, she is one of the most famous skiers in the world. And meanwhile, some less well-known guy has also made history today, right? Tell us about the U.S. men's cross-country ski team.
MANN: Yeah, this is pretty great. Until last week, the U.S. men hadn't won a medal in Olympic cross-country skiing in half a century. So then Ben Ogden from Vermont goes out and wins a silver medal last week. And then today, Ogden and his teammate - really close friend Gus Schumacher from Alaska - they went out and did it again, winning a second silver medal in the men's team sprint. Here they are speaking about doing this together.
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BEN OGDEN: It's just insanely fun to do it with your best buddy.
GUS SCHUMACHER: You know, it's nice to have success, but it's really nice to share it with people. And it's really fun, especially when it works out for everyone.
MANN: Really a statement there that these U.S. men can really compete.
CHANG: And real quick, Brian, I understand that there was an unauthorized entry in the cross-country race today, one with four legs.
MANN: This was so crazy. The crowd loved it.
CHANG: (Laughter).
MANN: In the middle of one team relay race, a big, beautiful wolf dog came out on the racecourse. It looked like a wolf had come out of the mountains.
CHANG: Wow.
MANN: No one was hurt, no harm done. The dog returned safely back to its owner. It was kind of fun.
CHANG: I love it. And a photo of the dog, named Nazgul, crossing the finish line was captured by the official race camera. You can see it at our website at npr.org. NPR's Brian Mann in Cortina. Thank you so much.
MANN: Thanks, Ailsa.
(SOUNDBITE OF MONTOYA'S "PIRARUCU") Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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