The decision to form a team with Breezy Johnson in Saalbach instead of with Lindsey Vonn did not go down well with the 40-year-old.
The veteran had been looking forward to skiing with Shiffrin, but it all fell apart when Shiffrin decided not to participate in the discipline. When Shiffrin eventually changed her mind, the 29-year-old was paired with Johnson, the gold medalist in the downhill event over the weekend.
"Why am I not surprised?" Vonn wrote on X.
"I'm a team player"
A post that was later deleted.
In a statement to the AP news agency, Vonn explained the post.
"I'm thrilled that Breezy and Mikaela are teaming up and I think they're a fantastic pair. But I'm disappointed in how it was handled. Despite the lack of communication, I'm a team player and look forward to being paired with AJ Hurt, who is a fantastic young skier."
On X, she wrote:
"I've always been a team player and I support my team no matter what. I'm not surprised by the decisions made, but now it's at least clear that it wasn't my decision. I've always been supportive and respectful, and that will never change."
The other American teams in the team combination are Lauren Macuga and Paula Moltzan, as well as Jacqueline Wiles and Katie Hensien.
181 wins together
The team combination is decided in a downhill and a slalom run, where the times are added together.
Mikaela Shiffrin is the most successful alpine skier of all time with 99 World Cup wins. Lindsey Vonn, who has made a comeback after six years, has 82 wins.
I think it would probably be one of the coolest things in alpine skiing to have 181 World Cup wins in a team, said Vonn last week.
According to the American team management, the pairing is based on this year's ranking in downhill and slalom.
The women's team combination will be decided on Tuesday.
