US Teenager Wins Gold Medal After Nearly Wiping Out In Slalom Race

American skier Mikaela Shiffrin won a gold medal in the women's slalom, living up to the high expectations placed on her going into the Olympics.

She held a massive 0.49-second lead going into her second run. All was going well until a little more than halfway through her run, when she lost her balance, lost contact with the snow, and nearly wiped out.

The mistake cut her lead in half going into the bottom of the course. It could have been a disaster, but the 18-year-old made an incredible recovery and won gold.

That ski is way up in the air:

Here it is in slow motion (via CBC):

She actually had both skis off the snow, briefly:

Yikes:

She saved it, for gold: