{"id":464236,"date":"2026-02-07T10:52:20","date_gmt":"2026-02-07T10:52:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/464236\/"},"modified":"2026-02-07T10:52:20","modified_gmt":"2026-02-07T10:52:20","slug":"australian-athletes-to-watch-at-the-2026-milano-cortina-winter-olympic-games","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/464236\/","title":{"rendered":"Australian athletes to watch at the 2026 Milano Cortina Winter Olympic Games"},"content":{"rendered":"

Australia heads into the 2026 Winter Olympic Games in Milano Cortina (and Livigno) with arguably its strongest team in history.<\/p>\n

This season alone, 11 different Australians have won a total of 26 medals at World Cup level across seven different sporting disciplines.<\/p>\n

That doesn’t even include the two X Games medals won by Scotty James<\/a> and Indra Brown<\/a> in Aspen last week.<\/p>\n

Thirteen of those World Cup medals have been gold, while three Aussies \u2014 Jakara Anthony, Brown and Adam Lambert \u2014 currently wear the yellow bib as leaders of their respective World Cup standings.<\/p>\n

Australia has never won more than four medals at a single Winter Olympic Games \u2014 Beijing 2022 was the most successful in terms of total number of medals with one gold, two silvers and a bronze. Australia won two golds and a silver at the 2010 Vancouver Games, which is technically a more successful Games if we were to plot it on a medal table.<\/p>\n

“Sochi was our greatest size of team, but I think the breadth and the depth of our performances over the last quad is a testament to our national sporting organisations and the Olympic Winter Institute,” Alisa Camplin-Warner said at the team announcement at the MCG last month.<\/p>\n

“I think the breadth and depth is really unique, that’s why I call this an iconic team \u2026 we’ve not gone into a Games with that kind of profile before.”<\/p>\n

It’s shaping up to be a very interesting Games.<\/p>\n

“I’m sure it’ll be our best team yet,” Valentino Guseli said of the squad.<\/p>\n

Of course, anything can happen on the day of the competition, but Australia has grounds to be extremely confident that these Games could be the most successful in history.<\/p>\n

Here’s a look at a handful of Australia’s genuine medal chances to keep an eye on these Games.<\/p>\n

Moguls: Jakara Anthony\"Jakara Jakara Anthony is the world number one ranked moguls skier.(Getty Images: Sarah Stier)<\/p>\n

Defending Olympic champion. World Cup leader.<\/p>\n

There is no question that Anthony is the woman to beat in the women’s mogul field, even on her return from an injury-ruined 2024\/25 season.<\/p>\n

Anthony has won three World Cup events this year<\/a> and, with two chances to win gold with the addition of the dual moguls to the program, the 27-year-old from Barwon Heads could become Australia’s most successful Winter Olympian at these Games.<\/p>\n

“Each Winter Games has been a different experience for me,” Anthony said.<\/p>\n

“My first one was going in with no real expectations, and then second one was going in as a gold medal favourite. These ones will be going in as the defending champion.<\/p>\n

“There’s a lot to learn on the way, and things keep coming up that surprise me. I’m sure in these last few weeks there’s still a lot more to learn.”<\/p>\n

When is she competing? Moguls qualifying from 9:15pm (AEDT) February 11. Dual Moguls from 8:30pm (AEDT) February 14.<\/p>\n

Snowboard cross: Josie Baff\"Josie Josie Baff is a world championship silver medallist.(Getty Images: Agence Zoom\/Alexis Boichard)<\/p>\n

Snowboard cross is, for want of a better word, a bit of a gamble.<\/p>\n

So many factors can play into a successful run, not least the effect of other people ploughing into you when you least expect it.<\/p>\n

But Josie Baff has been a model of consistency since the last Olympics, earning 14 World Cup podiums in total.<\/p>\n

Baff already has an Olympic gold medal to call her own; she won the Youth Olympic Games gold at Lausanne 2020. So could she take the leap and claim a senior gold in Livigno?<\/p>\n

When is she competing? Qualifying from 11:30pm (AEDT) February 13. Mixed team qualifying from 11:45pm (AEDT) February 15.<\/p>\n

Freeski halfpipe: Indra Brown\"Indra Indra Brown has emerged as a surprise medal contender.(Supplied: FIS\/Li Runsheng)<\/p>\n

What more is there to say about this Melbourne schoolgirl?<\/p>\n

A podium finisher in her first-ever World Cup event<\/a> (first three events actually, including a maiden World Cup gold in just her third start at the Calgary Snow Rodeo<\/a>).<\/p>\n

A silver medallist at her first-ever X Games<\/a>.<\/p>\n

A medal chance at her first ever Olympics? You’d better believe it.<\/p>\n

Camplin-Warner said she hopes that Brown won’t put too much pressure on herself despite her early success.<\/p>\n

“She’ll be 16 at the Games, and what I hope is that she can just be open to the whole experience, enjoy it, not heap too much pressure on herself,” the chef de mission said.<\/p>\n

“No doubt she’s really hopeful going into the Games, but for our younger generation, being easy with the whole experience and just enjoying it and doing what they do without overthinking it is something I really hope for them.”<\/p>\n

When is she competing? Qualifying 5:30am (AEDT) February 20, final from 5:30am (AEDT) February 22.<\/p>\n

Moguls: Matt Graham\"Matt Matt Graham won bronze medal in the men’s dual moguls at the world championships in St Moritz, 2025.(OWIA: Chris Hocking)<\/p>\n

How fitting it would be for Matt Graham to climb back onto the Olympic podium in Livigno.<\/p>\n

The now 31-year-old won a silver medal in PyeongChang but, heartbreakingly, missed the final in Beijing<\/a> after suffering from a badly damaged shoulder that needed several rounds of surgery.<\/p>\n

But the four-time Olympian bounced back<\/a> and is in the form of his life at the moment, winning gold<\/a> and silver medals this World Cup campaign<\/a> amongst the deepest fields in moguls history.<\/p>\n

With two chances for a medal, including his preferred dual moguls event, there is every chance that Graham can achieve a degree of personal redemption in what is likely his last Games.<\/p>\n

“Going into my fourth Games, I’m still chasing. As a kid, I always wanted to be an Olympic gold medallist. So that’s still on the cards. I still believe I can do that \u2014 and that’s what I am striving for,” he said.<\/p>\n

When is he competing? Moguls qualifying from 9:15pm (AEDT) February 11. Dual moguls from 8:30pm (AEDT), February 15.<\/p>\n

Snowboard halfpipe: Valentino Guseli\"Valentino Valentino Guseli is a chance of winning a medal in the halfpipe.(Supplied: Henrieke Ibing\/NEAC)<\/p>\n

Valentino Guseli headed towards the Milano Cortina Games with high hopes of competing across all three park and pipe disciplines<\/a> on the snowboard.<\/p>\n

That hasn’t worked out, an ACL injury last year<\/a> cruelling his chances as a triple threat medal winner.<\/p>\n

But given he has won two medals in halfpipe on the World Cup circuit this year, and has already sampled an Olympic final in the sport as a teenager in Beijing, perhaps having a sole focus will work out well for the now 20-year-old.<\/p>\n

“It feels good to have a couple of results under my belt going into this next Games,” Guseli said.<\/p>\n

When is he competing? Qualifying from 5:30am (AEDT) February 12, final from 5:30am (AEDT) February 14.<\/p>\n

Snowboard halfpipe: Scott James\"Scotty With a silver and a bronze to his name at the alst two Olympics, Scotty James is hoping to go one better in Milan.(Getty Images: Ezra Shaw)<\/p>\n

If we learned anything from the X Games<\/a> or the Laax Open<\/a> in January, it’s that Scotty James is on top of his game heading into the Winter Olympics.<\/p>\n

A bronze medallist in PyeongChang and silver medallist in Beijing, will it be third time lucky for one of the greatest halfpipe exponents the snowboarding world has ever seen?<\/p>\n

A gold would seal his legacy, but given his form and consistency, a medal of any colour is surely his to lose.<\/p>\n

When is he competing? Qualifying from 5:30am (AEDT) February 12, final from 5:30am (AEDT) February 14.<\/p>\n

Snowboard cross: Adam Lambert\"Adam Adam Lambert has finally got a taste of gold \u2014 and now he wants more.(FIS Snowboard)<\/p>\n

Timing is everything in sport. Getting a run of form at the right time can mean the difference between success and failure.<\/p>\n

So mid-January was a great time for Adam Lambert to claim his first World Cup victory in Dongbeiya<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Having battled on the World Cup circuit for eight years without standing on the top step, Lambert added to his two podiums already this season with a gold in the final race before the Milano Cortina Games.<\/p>\n

“Of course, it keeps the momentum going before the Olympics, but it’s just important for me personally as an athlete,” Lambert said.<\/p>\n

“This is my very first win, and I am just so excited that it’s finally happened.”<\/p>\n

It’s certainly not a bad time to hit top form and, now he has a taste of gold, you’d better believe he wants more.<\/p>\n

When is he competing? Qualifying from 11:45pm (AEDT) February 12. Mixed team qualifying from 11:45pm (AEDT) February 15.<\/p>\n

Aerials: Laura Peel\"Laura Last year Laura Peel was unstoppable. Can she win an elusive Olympic medal in Milan?(Getty Images: Matthias Hangst)<\/p>\n

At her best, Laura Peel is unbeatable.<\/p>\n

Her full-back-back-back triple somersaults are on a different level to everyone else’s \u2014she proved that by winning five of seven World Cup events in the 2024\/25 season to claim her third career crystal globe<\/a>.<\/p>\n

But aerials is incredibly unforgiving. One chance. One hope. One mistake and it’s all over.<\/p>\n

This year, things have not gone so smoothly, with just one World Cup win to her name, despite recording some truly astronomical scores in qualifying \u2014 and then a knee injury suffered on the eve of the Games further dented her hopes.<\/p>\n

But given her ceiling is incredibly high \u2014 and not just because of the height she leaps \u2014 you cannot rule her out.<\/p>\n

“I never imagined that I would be training for my fourth Olympics. I hoped for one, maybe two, and here we are at four, and time flies. I’m still loving what I’m doing, and I think I’m still getting better,” Peel said.<\/p>\n

When is she competing? Qualifying from 8:45pm (AEDT) February 17, finals from 9:30pm (AEDT) February 9:30pm (AEDT).<\/p>\n

Aerials: Danielle Scott\"Danielle Danielle Scott is a model of consistency.(Getty Images: Al Bello)<\/p>\n

Consistency is the game for late-starter Dani Scott.<\/p>\n

Few aerialists have been able to match this 35-year-old former gymnast for consistency over the last few years, in which she has twice won the crystal globe as World Cup winner<\/a>, and has won a silver and a bronze<\/a> at the last two World Championships.<\/p>\n

Ending the season with medals in her last two events<\/a>, Scott is warming up as a genuine medal threat in Livigno.<\/p>\n

“Coming from a sunburnt country like Australia, we really are defying the odds. To be doing so well in a Winter sport is something special,” Scott said.<\/p>\n

When is she competing? Qualifying from 8:45pm (AEDT) February 17, finals from 9:30pm (AEDT) February 9:30pm (AEDT).<\/p>\n

Monobob: Bree Walker\"Bree Bree Walker finished second overall in the World Cup standings this season.(Getty Images: Robert Michael)<\/p>\n

Bree Walker has just had the best season of her career \u2014 winning three World Cup gold medals, a silver and a bronze to finish a tight second in the overall standings<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Walker made one mistake in Beijing, and it cost her a medal, finishing in fifth spot overall.<\/p>\n

She finished fourth at the test event earlier this year in Cortina but has gone from strength to strength since then, winning on a variety of different courses to build confidence.<\/p>\n

“I’m just focusing on what I need to do,” Walker said when told she was a medal favourite for the Games.<\/p>\n

Well, doing what she needs to do is currently going fast \u2014 and that’s something she’s delivering on in spades.<\/p>\n

When is she competing? Heat 1 and 2 from 8pm (AEDT) on February 15, heat 3 and 4 from 5am (AEDT) on February 17.<\/p>\n

With 53 Aussies competing across northern Italy, there’s plenty to keep your attention through the early hours of the night this February.<\/p>\n

And although, of course, Australia is desperately keen for medals \u2014 that is not the only measure of success.<\/p>\n

What about Abbey Willcox, who missed out on qualifying for Beijing due to injury?<\/p>\n

What about Rosie Fordham, the cross-country skier pushing new boundaries for Australians in what is one of the most competitive competitions around?<\/p>\n

How about Daisy Thomas, whose Olympic dream was almost over before it started after suffering an injury in November?<\/p>\n

And then there’s Madison Hoffman, who qualified for Beijing only to rupture her ACL in the weeks leading up to competition and miss out as a result?<\/p>\n

Success is not just measured in medals, with a multitude of storylines from athletes across the sporting spectrum set to light up the Games.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Australia heads into the 2026 Winter Olympic Games in Milano Cortina (and Livigno) with arguably its strongest team…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":464237,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[110809,69620,64,63,191364,237786,190846,220527,236743,142585,237917,235765,142583,14932,195270,85,196603,31080],"class_list":{"0":"post-464236","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-sports","8":"tag-2026-winter-olympics","9":"tag-adam-lambert","10":"tag-au","11":"tag-australia","12":"tag-bree-walker","13":"tag-danielle-scott","14":"tag-indra-brown","15":"tag-jakara-anthony","16":"tag-josie-baff","17":"tag-laura-peel","18":"tag-livigno","19":"tag-matt-graham","20":"tag-milano-cortina","21":"tag-olympic-games","22":"tag-scotty-james","23":"tag-sports","24":"tag-valentino-guseli","25":"tag-winter-olympics"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/464236","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=464236"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/464236\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/464237"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=464236"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=464236"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=464236"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}