Mikaela Shiffrin, covered in sweat from working out, gave a big hug to Missy Franklin when they met for the first time this summer.
“The moment I met Miki,” Franklin said, “I knew I had found a friend for life.”
Ever since the 2014 Winter Olympics, Shiffrin had heard that she reminded people of Franklin. Both are Colorado natives with bubbly personalities who won Olympic gold medals before turning 19. But since their offseasons don’t overlap, they were never in the same place at the same time.
The two Olympians finally met in person in August.