Mikaela Shiffrin's fiance Aleksander Kilde reacts as skier wins record-tying 15th medal at World Championships

Mikaela Shiffrin's fiance, two-time Olympic medalist Aleksander Kilde, expressed his thoughts after the American skier won a record-tying 15th World Championships medal. She won the gold medal in the newly introduced team competition with childhood teammate Breezy Johnson.

Shiffrin is returning from a two-month-long injury break, and hadn't confirmed her participation in the combined team event until Monday. However, she was still close to her best during Tuesday's race and finished third fastest in the slalom run.

Johnson, who won the downhill world title last week, clocked the fourth fastest time in downhill. The American pair's combined time of 2:40.89 was enough for Shiffrin to overtake Toni Sailer, Marielle Goitschel, Anja Pärson, and Marcel Hirscher as the only skier with more than seven gold medals at the World Championships.

It also marked Shiffrin's 15th career medal and ties her with Christl Cranz as the most decorated skier in World Championships history. Her fiance, Aleksander Kilde, couldn't be happier and shared a pair of emotional emojis to express his joy in an Instagram story, writing:

"🥹🥹 @mikaelashiffrin @breezyjohnson🥇🥇"

Aleksander Kilde's Instagram story

Shiffrin and Kilde have been dating since 2021 and announced their engagement in March last year. The Norwegian skier will miss the entire 2024/25 alpine skiing season as he recovers from last year's devastating crash.

Kilde suffered multiple injuries after colliding into the safety nets during a downhill World Cup race in Wengen, Switzerland. He had to be airlifted from the course and has undergone multiple surgeries since.

---

"I’m inspired by this event" - Mikaela Shiffrin after winning the first-ever combined team event at the World Championships

Mikaela Shiffrin at the Audi FIS Alpine World Ski Championships - (Source: Getty)

The combined team made its debut on Tuesday at the World Championships, and Mikaela Shiffrin has fallen in love with it. After winning the first-ever gold medal in the event on Tuesday, the American skier said she was inspired by the team format of the new event.

“I’m inspired by this event, actually, which is something a little bit unanticipated,” Mikaela Shiffrin said on Peacock. “The vibe around it, teaming up and feeling like we’re doing it together was so cool.”

The 29-year-old had suffered a scary crash in Killington last year and underwent abdominal surgery before returning to the slopes on January 30. After winning her eighth World Championships gold medal on Tuesday, she will now race for her ninth in Saturday's slalom.