Olympic alpine skier Mikaela Shiffrin tested positive for COVID-19 less than six weeks ahead of the 2022 Winter Olympics.
"I wanted to let you all know that I'm doing well, but unfortunately I had a positive COVID test," she wrote on Twitter. "Best of luck to my teammates... I'll be cheering for you. Thank you all for your support. I'll see you in the new year," she added.
Shiffrin wrote she is following protocol and is isolating herself from others after the positive result. She also said she will miss the races for the World Cup giant slalom in Lienz, Austria.
The two-time Olympic champion from the U.S. recently won the giant slalom at the Women's Alpine Skiing World Cup event in Courchevel, France.
"I am not full tank right now, but I felt I skied some of my best skiing and some of my toughest skiing today," Shiffrin told the International Ski Federation (FIS) after the race.
Shiffrin is set to compete in the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing, China, after she gained one of the four spots on the United States women's alpine ski team.
In her Olympic career, she won gold during the 2014 Sochi Games in slalom and at the 2018 Pyeongchang Games in giant slalom. Additionally, she won a silver medal in the combined at the 2018 Games.
Shiffrin said she would miss World Cup giant slalom and slalom races scheduled for this Tuesday and Wednesday in Lienz, Austria.
Missing the races in Lienz is a big hit to Shiffrin's chances of regaining the overall World Cup title. She leads Italy's Sofia Goggia by 115 points in the standings but needs to maintain a high level of points in the technical disciplines of giant slalom and slalom since Goggia has been virtually unbeatable in the speed events of downhill and super-G.
Shiffrin's positive test comes at a particularly bad time for her with six consecutive technical races scheduled.
Other top skiers who have missed races recently after testing positive for COVID include former overall champion Lara Gut-Behrami, Austrian world champion Katharina Liensberger and Alice Robinson of New Zealand.
Maryna Gąsienica-Daniel, the Polish skier who finished sixth in two giant slaloms in Courchevel, France, last week, also announced a positive test on Monday. She said on Instagram that she is "isolated at home," and she, too, will miss the races in Lienz. Gąsienica-Daniel added that she is "sad" but otherwise "feeling good."
The Beijing Olympics open on February 4.
The next women's World Cup race after Lienz is a slalom in Zagreb, Croatia, on January 4.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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