In 2026 at Beijing, Mikaela Shiffrin skied out on her opening run in the giant slalom. Then again in the slalom. Zero medals. The woman with 47 World Cup wins before age 27 left the mountain with nothing. That crash reshaped the entire women’s alpine field. Now, heading into Milano Cortina 2026, the pressure is reversed. Shiffrin is chasing history. Others are chasing her. Here are the seven races — and the competitors who will define them.
Why These 7 Skiers Will Control the Podium
The 2026 Olympic alpine program runs 11 events across two weeks. But the gold medals shake down to a handful of athletes who dominate multiple disciplines. You don’t need to memorize 88 names. Focus on these seven.
| Athlete | Country | Key Event(s) | 2026-25 World Cup Wins |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mikaela Shiffrin | USA | Slalom, Giant Slalom | 5 |
| Marco Odermatt | Switzerland | Giant Slalom, Downhill | 8 |
| Aleksander Aamodt Kilde | Norway | Downhill, Super-G | 4 |
| Lara Gut-Behrami | Switzerland | Super-G, Giant Slalom | 6 |
| Wendy Holdener | Switzerland | Slalom, Combined | 2 |
| Lucas Braathen | Brazil | Slalom, Giant Slalom | 3 |
| Valerie Grenier | Canada | Giant Slalom | 1 |
These seven have 29 combined World Cup wins this season. The rest of the field combined has 14. Watch these names. Everyone else is fighting for bronze.
Mikaela Shiffrin — The Redemption Arc That Changes Everything
Beijing broke her. Not physically — she won a World Cup slalom three weeks later. But mentally, the two DNFs in her best events cracked the narrative of invincibility. Since then, Shiffrin has rebuilt her approach. She hired a sports psychologist. She stopped racing every event. She now targets specific peaks.
Her 2026 schedule is brutal: slalom, giant slalom, and potentially the team combined. She has 88 World Cup wins. One more Olympic gold ties her with Janica Kostelić for the most by a female alpine skier. The math is simple: if she stands up in both technical events, she medals in both. But the GS is where the risk lives. The Beijing crash happened on a flat, innocuous section of the course. No warning. That memory doesn’t fade.
What to watch for in her GS
Shiffrin’s GS technique is the most efficient on tour. She skis with minimal upper-body rotation and near-perfect edge angles. But the Olympic GS course at Cortina is steep in the middle section — the same pitch that took out 12 racers in the 2026 World Championships. If she attacks that section cleanly, she wins. If she hesitates, she’s fifth.
Her slalom is still the gold standard
No woman has won more slalom World Cups. She has 57. The next closest active skier has 12. In slalom, the margin for error is smaller — hundredths of seconds separate gold from fourth. Shiffrin’s start-to-finish consistency is unmatched. She hasn’t finished outside the top three in a slalom since January 2026.
Marco Odermatt — The Man Who Wins Everything (Except Olympics)
Odermatt has 31 World Cup wins. Two overall World Cup titles. A world championship gold in GS. But zero Olympic medals. That stat haunts him. In Beijing, he finished second in the GS by 0.19 seconds. He lost the super-G by 0.04 seconds. Those two near-misses define his career arc.
He enters 2026 as the favorite in GS and a podium threat in downhill and super-G. His GS skiing is mechanical — he generates speed through the flats that no one else can match. The Cortina GS course has a long flat section before the final pitch. That’s his playground.
The downhill question
Odermatt won his first downhill in December 2026. He now has four downhill wins. But the Olympic downhill at Cortina is a gliding course — long, fast, with minimal terrain variation. Odermatt’s strength is turning, not pure gliding. If the snow is soft, he wins. If it’s icy, the pure gliders like Kilde and Dominik Paris have the edge.
Aleksander Aamodt Kilde — The Speed Specialist With a Point to Prove
Kilde is the best downhill skier on the planet right now. He has 16 World Cup downhill wins. But his Olympic record is thin: one bronze in super-G from Beijing. He wants gold. The Cortina downhill is a Kilde course — steep top section, technical middle, fast finish. He won there in 2026 by 0.72 seconds.
The risk is his health. Kilde has had three knee surgeries and a broken hand in the last two years. He races at 100% aggression every run. That’s why he wins. That’s also why he crashes. In 2026, he crashed in Kitzbühel at 140 km/h and walked away. Not everyone does.
Super-G is his dark horse
Kilde’s super-G results are inconsistent. He wins one, finishes 12th the next. But the Cortina super-G course has two big jumps and a compression that rewards pure speed. If he lands clean, he’s under 1:20. That wins.
Lara Gut-Behrami — The Veteran Who Finally Has the Full Package
Gut-Behrami won Olympic bronze in 2014 and super-G gold in 2026. She’s 34. Most alpine skiers retire by 32. She’s getting faster. Her 2026 season was the best of her career: six World Cup wins, the overall title, and the super-G globe. She skis with a maturity that younger racers lack — she knows when to push and when to save energy.
Her super-G is the best in the world. She reads terrain like a map. She knows exactly where to carry speed and where to scrub it. At Cortina, the super-G course has a critical left-right combination at 45 seconds. If she nails that, she’s under 1:19. No one else breaks that barrier consistently.
Giant slalom is the wildcard
Gut-Behrami won the GS World Cup title in 2026. But her GS technique is unorthodox — she uses a wider stance than most, which costs her time in the ruts. On a fresh course, she’s dangerous. On a rutted second run, she drops to sixth or seventh. The Olympic GS has two runs. The second run is always rutted. That’s her weakness.
Wendy Holdener — The Most Versatile Skier You’ve Never Heard Of
Holdener has Olympic medals in slalom (silver), combined (gold), and team event (gold). She’s the only active female skier with medals in three different disciplines. She’s not the fastest in any single event. But she’s top-five in four events. That consistency makes her a podium threat every time she straps in.
The team combined event — new for 2026 — plays directly into her hands. One skier does downhill, one does slalom. Holdener can do both. She won the 2026 World Championships combined by 0.34 seconds. She’s the favorite.
Her slalom is her best shot at individual gold
Holdener’s slalom technique is smooth and efficient. She doesn’t make explosive movements. She flows. On a steep, icy slalom course, that flow saves energy in the second run. She’s finished second in slalom at the last two Olympics. Third time might be the charm.
Lucas Braathen — The Rebel Who Changed Countries
Braathen retired in 2026 at age 23. Then he un-retired, switched from Norway to Brazil (his mother’s country), and won a World Cup slalom in his first race back. He’s now the face of Brazilian alpine skiing — a nation that has never won an Olympic medal in snow sports. He’s also the best slalom skier in the world right now.
His slalom style is aggressive. He attacks the gates, skis close, and generates speed through the transitions. He won the 2026 slalom World Cup title by 112 points. The Olympic slalom course at Cortina is set on a 32-degree slope — steep enough to punish hesitation. Braathen doesn’t hesitate.
The giant slalom question
Braathen’s GS results are improving. He finished fourth in the 2026 GS standings. But his GS technique is still developing — he skis too upright in the transitions. Against Odermatt, that costs 0.3 seconds. He’s a medal threat in slalom. In GS, he’s a top-10 skier with a chance at bronze if others falter.
Valerie Grenier — The Canadian Contender Nobody Talks About
Grenier won the 2026 GS at Kranjska Gora by 1.24 seconds. That’s a demolition. She then won the 2026 GS at Killington. She has the fastest single GS run of any active skier. But she’s inconsistent — she has five DNFs in the last two seasons. When she’s on, she’s unbeatable. When she’s off, she doesn’t finish.
The Olympic GS is two runs. Grenier needs both runs clean. She has the raw speed to win by 0.5 seconds on a good day. But the mental game is her weakness. She overthinks the second run. If she trusts her skiing, she medals. If she hesitates, she’s out.
Her super-G is improving
Grenier finished sixth in the 2026 super-G standings. She’s learning the discipline. At Cortina, the super-G course has a long traverse that rewards gliding. Grenier is a strong glider. She could sneak into the top five.
How to Watch These Races Without Losing Your Mind
The 2026 Olympic alpine schedule is tight. Four events in the first five days. Here’s the critical viewing window:
- Day 2 (Feb 7): Men’s Downhill — Kilde vs Odermatt vs Paris. Watch the top section. That’s where Kilde wins.
- Day 4 (Feb 9): Women’s Giant Slalom — Shiffrin vs Gut-Behrami vs Grenier. The second run is the decider.
- Day 6 (Feb 11): Men’s Giant Slalom — Odermatt vs Braathen vs the field. Odermatt’s race to lose.
- Day 8 (Feb 13): Women’s Slalom — Shiffrin vs Holdener. The most technical event of the Games.
- Day 10 (Feb 15): Team Combined — Holdener’s gold to win. Watch the downhill leg. That sets the table.
The time zone difference is minimal — Cortina is UTC+1, same as most of Europe. For US viewers, races start at 4:00 AM ET. Set an alarm for the second run. That’s where medals are won.
The Verdict
Shiffrin’s Beijing crash was the best thing that happened to her. It stripped away the invincibility and forced her to rebuild. She enters 2026 with a clearer head and a sharper focus. Odermatt enters with the weight of two near-misses. Kilde enters with a body held together by tape and grit. Holdener enters as the quietest medal threat in the field.
The gold medals will go to the skiers who handle the pressure of the second run. The first run is about speed. The second run is about nerve. Shiffrin has the nerve. Odermatt needs to prove he does. Kilde has nothing to prove except that his body can hold up one more time.
Watch the women’s GS. That race will tell you everything about who is ready and who is still haunted by Beijing.