United States' Mikaela Shiffrin, right, competes alongside Slovakia's Petra Vlhova on her way to win a women's World Cup parallel slalom, in St. Moritz, Switzerland, Sunday, Dec. 9, 2018. (AP Photo/Giovanni Auletta)
United States' Mikaela Shiffrin, right, competes alongside Slovakia's Petra Vlhova on her way to win a women's World Cup parallel slalom, in St. Moritz, Switzerland, Sunday, Dec. 9, 2018. (AP Photo/Giovanni Auletta) Credit: ap — Giovanni Auletta

St. Moritz, Switzerland — Mikaela Shiffrin won a World Cup event for the third time in eight days, beating Petra Vlhova in the head-to-head final of parallel slalom on Sunday.

Shiffrin trailed midway down the course after clipping a gate but led her Slovakian opponent through the final three gates to win by 0.11 seconds.

The American star’s 48th career World Cup win — fourth on the women’s all-time list — was her third straight after back-to-back victories in the super-G speed discipline Saturday at St. Moritz and last Sunday at Lake Louise, Canada.

“I’m not unbeatable, no,” Shiffrin told Swiss broadcaster RTS after the race. “I was so excited after (Saturday’s win), it was a bit of a challenge to refocus.”

Still, Shiffrin does look unbeatable if she stays injury-free chasing a third straight seasonlong overall title. With 100 more World Cup points on Sunday, she has more than double the total of her nearest rival, Switzerland’s Michelle Gisin.

Shiffrin will skip the next World Cup meeting — a downhill and super-G at Val Gardena, Italy — to focus on her specialist slalom and giant slalom events on Dec. 21-22 at Courchevel, France.

Vlhova advanced to the final in one of the tightest races, winning her semifinal by 0.02 from three-time Olympic medalist Wendy Holdener of Switzerland.

Holdener took third place, winning the small final against Austria’s Katharina Liensberger.

A new parallel racing format began with a morning qualifying race that sent the 32 fastest skiers into afternoon knockout rounds of head-to-head contests.

Strong Winds Stop Men

Val d’Isere, France — A men’s World Cup slalom race scheduled for the French resort of Val d’Isere on Sunday was canceled due to strong wind gusts.

The International Ski Federation did not immediately announce if the race would be made up at another venue later in the season.

It was slated to be the second slalom on the calendar this season. Austria’s Marcel Hirscher won the first slalom in Levi, Finland, last month. Hirscher also won a giant slalom in Val d’Isere on Saturday on the Stade Olympique de Bellevarde course.

College Football

Michigan’s Harbaugh: I’m Not Going Anywhere

Ann Arbor, Mich. — Jim Harbaugh insisted he is staying at Michigan to coach, responding to speculation he is returning to the NFL. The former San Francisco 49ers coach told ESPN he is not going anywhere.

“This is a choreographed message that comes up at this time every year before signing day,” Harbaugh told ESPN. “It’s people spreading messages to further their own personal agenda. But I’m on record right here, right now: I’m not going anywhere. I’m staying at Michigan. We have big plans here, and there’s a lot we want to accomplish.”

Former Ohio State star receiver and Fox Sports analyst Cris Carter has said Harbaugh is a potential candidate to lead the Green Bay Packers and Cleveland Browns.

Murray Regrets Tweets

Norman, Okla. — Newly minted Heisman Trophy winner Kyler Murray is apologizing for anti-gay tweets posted to his Twitter account several years ago, when he was 14 and 15.

The Oklahoma quarterback tweeted: “I apologize for the tweets that have come to light tonight from when I was 14 and 15. I used a poor choice of word that doesn’t reflect who I am or what I believe. I did not intend to single out any individual or group.”

The tweets have since been deleted from the account of the 21-year-old Murray, who won college football’s most prestigious individual award on Saturday night over Alabama’s Tua Tagovailoa and Ohio State’s Dwayne Haskins.

Golf

Oosthuizen Wins FirstSouth African Open

Johannesburg — Louis Oosthuizen won his first title at the South African Open on Sunday, running away from his challengers with a final-round 67 for a six-shot victory.

Oosthuizen led from the front on the final day at Randpark Golf Course and although his three-shot overnight lead was cut to one after three holes, he surged back for a ninth European Tour win and first in nearly three years. He finished on 18-under 266.

Romain Langasque was alone in second, with his closing 66 pushing him 18 places up the leaderboard on the final day and earning him a place at the British Open next July in Royal Portrush, Northern Ireland.

Charl Schwartzel (72), who led after two rounds in Johannesburg, finished in a tie for third with Bryce Easton, Thomas Aiken and Oliver Wilson. Schwartzel and Wilson claimed the other two British Open places.