The Olympic Skimo Sprints were held at the Stelvio Alpine Skiing Centre in Bormio, Italy, today, and two athletes made Olympic history. Marianne Fatton of Switzerland and Oriol Cardona Coll of Spain won the Skimo Sprint event for the women’s and men’s divisions, earning the sport’s first Olympic gold medals.
During the race, heavy snowfall made the conditions challenging for racers, who had to sprint uphill on skis, navigating “diamonds” that forced them into single-file paths. They then had to remove their skis, bootpack up a snow staircase, transition to downhill ski mode, and descend to complete the course. The races took roughly 3 minutes each.
American skimo competitors Anna Gibson and Cameron Smith placed ninth and 10th, respectively, in their divisions.
Skimo Sprints: The First Olympic Golds
Both Fatton and Cardona Coll cruised through their opening heats on Thursday morning and into the semi-finals. Both qualified for the final round in the semi-finals, though neither finished first. Fatton came in behind France’s Emily Harrop, and Cardona came behind Switzerland’s John Kistler.
The finals were next and would decide the winners. In the women’s race, Harrop was holding the lead right up until the bootpack, where Fatton overtook her and held onto first through the finish.
In the men’s final, Cardona didn’t falter. After breaking away and passing Switzerland’s Kistler and Arno Lietha near the beginning, he took the lead and didn’t relinquish it for the rest of the race. He crossed the finish line, celebrating his victory.
Skimo Mixed Team Relay to Come
With the sprints over, the next skimo event in Milano-Cortina will be the mixed team relay, held on Saturday, February 21. In this race, skiers compete in teams of two — one woman and one man. They both race twice, alternating between each lap. The handoff is made by physically touching the other teammate.
The mixed relay course has 140 m (460 feet) of elevation gain, and includes two ascents (one fully on skis, one bootpacking) and two descents. Following the semi-finals, 12 out of the 18 teams will advance to the final relay round.
For U.S. viewers, the races will air and stream on Peacock, NBC, or USA starting at 3:30 a.m. EST and will re-air at 8:00 p.m. EST. For the official schedule of skimo events, check out the NBC Olympics skimo webpage.
If you want a more in-depth breakdown of ski mountaineering in the Olympics, check out our guide to understanding Olympic Skimo.
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