Canadian snowboard legend Mark McMorris has unfinished business at the Olympic Winter Games Milano Cortina 2026 as he goes in search of the “ultimate treat” – Olympic gold.
A veteran of slopestyle as one of the first to compete in the discipline when it was introduced at Sochi 2014, McMorris has stepped onto the podium at each edition.
McMorris practically has a monopoly on the slopestyle bronze medal, but he would not mind upgrading to silver or gold in Milano Cortina.
“That would be the ultimate treat, or icing on the cake, if you will,” McMorris told CBC News
“But at the end of the day, in a judged sport, all I can push for is to ride to the best of my ability, and at the end of the day, I try not to get hung up on anything besides that and just enjoy the moment, ride strong and focus mainly on that.”
In slopestyle terms, Team Canada’s McMorris is somewhat of a relic as the last remaining snowboarder from the class of 2014 who broke new ground when the event debuted in Sochi.
Even as he pushes deeper into his 30s, McMorris is reluctant to make any predictions about his Olympic future and seems to be toying with the idea of another roller-coaster cycle.
“I didn’t know if I’d go to another one, and here I am pushing super hard and totally riding at the level that needs to be ridden at,” he said.
“So I don’t want to make any claims now. And there’s going to be potentially some new events in the next Olympics, so I don’t want to close that door quite yet. So I’m just going to focus on this for now.”
The 32-year-old McMorris will be in action in both the big air and the slopestyle in Livigno for a shot at some snowboard alchemy.
McMorris has not only demonstrated incredible longevity, reaching his fourth Olympics, but has also been the personification of resilience.
In the buildups to both Sochi 2014 and PyeongChang 2018, McMorris had to fight his way back from injury to reach the podium.
It would be foolish to count McMorris out to finally get his hands on gold.