Six for Six: Eileen Gu Closes Milano Cortina 2026 with Halfpipe Gold

It became almost routine to see weather throw a spanner in the works at the Winter Olympic Games this year. The women's halfpipe final was postponed from Saturday to Sunday due to a snowstorm, pushing it to the final day of Milano Cortina 2026. When the sun finally broke through Sunday morning, conditions were perfect: minimal wind, flawless visibility, and blue skies over Livigno Snow Park.

For Eileen Gu, the delay meant one more night to reflect on what was already a historic Milano Cortina campaign and an unprecedented Olympic career. At 22 years old, she had competed in five Olympic freestyle events across Beijing 2022 and Milano Cortina 2026, medaling in every single one. Sunday's halfpipe final was her sixth Olympic start. A medal would make it six Olympic medals from six starts… a perfect record that no other female freeskier in history could claim.

Eileen Knew What Lay Ahead

The numbers heading into Sunday were already remarkable: Beijing 2022: Gold in big air, gold in halfpipe, silver in slopestyle and at Milano Cortina 2026: Silver in slopestyle (0.38 points from gold) and silver in big air (1.75 points from gold).

The halfpipe final represented something big. It was about defending an Olympic title, yes. It was about bouncing back from two near-misses at gold, certainly, which attracted a viral media storm after Eileen clapped back at a member of the press when he asked about her “Gold medals lost”. But most significantly, it was about cementing a record that might never be matched: competing in six Olympic freestyle events across two Games and medaling in every single one.

No female freeskier had ever won more than four Olympic medals. Gu already had five before she would drop into the pipe Monday morning. Six medals from six starts would be a statistical achievement that transcended individual event victories.

Silver, Silver... and Then?

The first run didn't go according to plan. Gu went massive on her opening hit, so big that the run got loose and she couldn't hold it together. Score: 30.00. After two silvers decided by less than two points combined, starting her final event from essentially last place added pressure most athletes couldn't handle.

Great Britain's Zoe Atkin set the bar high in run one, posting 90.50 with amplitude that dwarfed the rest of the field. China's Li Fanghui followed with technical wizardry, throwing switch hits that included a switch 720 to switch 540 to switch 720 sequence that had the judges taking notice.

Gu, sitting in last place heading into run two, dropped in with everything to prove. What followed was the run of the day. Huge amplitude across all hits. Clean grabs throughout. Both-ways 900s executed with precision. A boosted alley-oop flat mute that drew gasps from the crowd. The score came back: 94.00. Shot to the top of the leaderboard.

The perfect record remained intact, but it wasn't secure. Li responded with 91.50 on her second run, moving into silver medal position with technical difficulty that showcased why she's considered one of the most creative pipe skiers in the world. Atkin, going even bigger than her first run, crashed on her fourth hit. She'd need run three to defend her position.

Heading into the final run, Gu held the lead. Li sat in second. Atkin had bronze but the amplitude to challenge for more if she could land clean.

Gu didn't play it safe. Her third run went even bigger, attacking every wall with the kind of commitment that defines Olympic champions. A slight tickle on the grab during her 900 blunt, but she'd held it long enough. Score: 94.75, the highest of the competition.

Li gave it everything on her final attempt. Two switch 900s, technical mastery on display, but the amplitude wasn't quite there. 93.00. Silver medal secured, but not enough to overtake Gu.

Atkin, guaranteed bronze, went to the stratosphere one more time. Switch 900 at the bottom, massive hits up top, everything she had left. 92.50. Bronze medal, but the gold belonged to Gu.

Final margin: 1.75 points. The same margin by which she'd lost big air gold days earlier. But this time, she was on the winning side.

Six Medals, Six Starts, Gu Has Made History

With halfpipe gold secured, Eileen Gu's Olympic record stands alone in freestyle skiing history:

Beijing 2022:
Big Air: Gold (188.25)
Halfpipe: Gold (95.25)
Slopestyle: Silver (86.23)

Milano Cortina 2026:
Halfpipe: Gold (94.75)
Big Air: Silver (179.00)
Slopestyle: Silver (86.58)

A 100% podium rate across two Olympic Games. No other female freeskier has more than four Olympic medals. No other athlete in freestyle skiing—male or female—has medaled in every Olympic event they've entered across multiple Games while competing in six events.

Gu's gold medal caps a Milano Cortina 2026 campaign that saw the Collective’s best-ever performance across freestyle disciplines. Tormod Frostad's big air gold. Mac Forehand and Matej Svancer completing the big air podium sweep. Henry Sildaru's halfpipe silver. Two silvers for Gu before this gold. Top-ten finishes from Naomi Urness, Liu Mengting, and Dylan Deschamps in their Olympic debuts.

Eight Olympic medals across five freestyle events. A collective that delivered across the board.

At 22, with six Olympic medals from six starts across two Games, Eileen Gu closed out Milano Cortina the way she opened Beijing 2022: standing on top of the podium in halfpipe. The record stands alone. Six for six. The most decorated female freeskier in Olympic history, and a perfect podium record that may never be matched. The gauntlet has been thrown down.

Final Results — Women's Halfpipe
Eileen Gu — 94.75
Li Fanghui — 93.00
Zoe Atkin — 92.50