Breezy Johnson Wins Downhill Gold at the Milano-Cortina 2026 Olympic Winter Games

Breezy Johnson, wearing bib number 6, unexpectedly secured the gold medal in the Downhill event at the 2026 Olympic Winter Games. This victory came just a year after she claimed the World Championship title in Saalbach. The 30-year-old American skier has achieved nine podium finishes in the World Cup but has never won a race. This is her second Winter Olympics. She previously finished seventh in the Downhill event at the 2018 PyeongChang Winter Olympics.

"I had a good feeling about today. I still can’t believe it yet. I don’t know when it will sink in. I knew I had to push, go harder than I did in training. I had to be super clean and felt like I did that. But I knew the speeds were good, so I hoped it would be enough," Johnson said.

Emma Aicher finished in second place just 0.04 seconds behind the US skier. On December 13, 2025, in St. Moritz, the all-rounder German skier claimed her second Alpine Ski World Cup Downhill win. The 22-year-old German skier is competing in her second Winter Olympics at the Milano Cortina 2026 Games. The 22-year-old added another silver medal to her 2022 Team's Combined silver.

"It still feels a bit unreal, but I'm incredibly happy. I didn't think it would be enough," Aicher said.

Sofia Goggia rounded up the podium in third place to the delight of the Italian ski fans, 0.59 seconds behind Johnson. She has won three Olympic medals, including a gold medal in Downhill at the 2018 PyeongChang Winter Games and a silver medal in Beijing 2022.

"I know I made some mistakes here and there. But at the same time, if I have to think overall, it's the third medal in my third Olympics. It's huge. So-so with my performance, but overall I got a medal again. It's a privilege," Goggia said.

Unfortunately, Lindsey Vonn's Olympic dream ended in just 12 seconds. The 41-year-old, who had risked starting despite a torn cruciate ligament, crashed heavily in the first sector of the legendary Olympia delle Tofane slope. During a right-hand turn, she clipped a gate, lost her balance, and was launched into the air. She slid several meters down the hard-packed slope and remained there for several minutes. The race was paused for about 15 minutes while the 2010 Downhill Olympic champion was airlifted by helicopter.

Later, another serious crash occurred in Cortina. Cande Moreno, who started the race with bib number 26, crashed after the Tofana jump. She went into the safety netting and slid several meters down the steep slope. After receiving initial treatment, she was airlifted to the hospital by helicopter.