Adam Scriven
Show Bio
The Winter Olympics men’s downhill was postponed due to high winds on Saturday night, and will now be run on the same day as the women’s giant slalom on Sunday night’s schedule, US time.
You can find our men’s downhill picks here, but for now let’s concentrate on the women’s giant slalom, in which the US team has high hopes of a gold medal.
Mikaela Shiffrin makes her first appearance of the 2022 Winter Olympics when she defends her Olympic giant slalom gold, starting at approximately 8:30pm ET in Sunday’s revised schedule.
The 73-time World Cup race winner claimed her second Olympic gold medal in this event at Pyeongchang, adding to the one she won for the slalom at Sochi 2014, and Shiffrin is at +240 odds with FanDuel Sportsbook, behind only Sweden’s Sara Hector in the betting to be fastest across the 2 runs of the Yanqing course.
A lot has happened off the piste in Shiffrin’s life since her 2018 success. She considered quitting skiing after the death of her father in early 2020, and missed time with Covid over Christmas, which clearly affected her performances on her return. An emotional victory in the Schladming night slalom a month ago, though, showed she can’t be written off, and she is leading the overall World Cup standings.
Women’s slalom best bet: Petra Vlhova (+750)
Hector is in the form of her life and tops the giant slalom World Cup rankings, having won the last 2 events. Consistent French veteran Tessa Worley (+500) is another to consider, but at the current odds the best value bet could be Shiffrin’s great rival Petra Vlhova at +750 odds.
Having won the overall World Cup globe last year, the Slovakian is following a selective program this season with the Olympics her clear goal. She has already assured herself of the World Cup slalom title and finished 2nd in 2 of the last 3 giant slalom races, as well as winning GS gold at the 2019 World Championships.
Sunday’s other Winter Olympics action
US curling mixed doubles pair Vicky Persinger and Christopher Plys take on Great Britain at 8:05pm ET in what could be a crucial final group match in the battle for a semifinal slot.
Canada women’s hockey team will be looking to keep up their irresistible form when they tackle Russia at 11:10pm ET.
Pickswise is the home of NFL Picks. Check out our latest playoff picks and round-by-round analysis as well as our free Super Bowl Predictions.
