SOCHI, Russia – Mikaela Shiffrin isn't the only star in her family these days.
As the 18-year-old from Eagle-Vail, Colo., has skyrocketed to fame during the Sochi Games, Shiffrin's grandmother has become a bit of a celebrity herself. Pauline Condron is very close to her granddaughter, which has made the 92-year-old a popular interview subject for reporters looking to paint a picture of Shiffrin's family life.
Shiffrin says her mother has taken to locking herself in her bedroom while she does telephone interviews. All the better to keep the riff-raff around the house from distracting her.
Condron, who is in good health, has said several times that Shiffrin's skiing "is keeping me alive."
"I really hope that I can grow up to be her," Shiffrin says. "Not just like her. I want to be her. She's an angel in my eyes.
"For her to be so excited about my ski racing and just to be so open about it really gives me the inspiration to do it and do it my best."
— By Jon Krawczynski — Twitter http://twitter.com/APKrawczynski
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Associated Press reporters are filing dispatches about happenings in and around Sochi during the 2014 Winter Games. Follow AP journalists covering the Olympics on Twitter: http://apne.ws/1c3WMiu
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