Norway's Tormod Frostad won a surprise gold in men's freestyle skiing big air.KIRILL KUDRYAVTSEV/AFP/Getty Images
The Olympic medal leader, Norway, scored yet another win Tuesday night, when Tormod Frostad won a surprise gold in the freeski big air final in Livigno. His win takes Norway’s gold medal haul to 14 – five more than second place Italy.
Mac Forehand of the U.S. took silver and Austria’s Matej Svancer won bronze.
The poor visibility on a snowy night did not stop the competitors from performing intricate, high-amplitude tricks. In one of his runs, Forehand, 24, accomplished six full rotations, triggering a roar from the spectators.
Big air sees competitors shoot down a steep incline and soar off ramp with a 39-degree pitch, after which they are airborne for about 2.5 seconds before landing at more than 60 km/hr. They make three runs; the lowest score is dropped.
Two Canadians entered the event. Evan McEachran, 28, of Oakville, Ont., did not make it into the final round. Quebec’s Dylan Deschamps, 23, had one of the strongest second runs among the 12 finalists and might have headed to the podium if his third run was of equal quality.
Milano Cortina 2026 Olympics - Freestyle Skiing - Men's Freeski Big Air Final - Livigno Snow Park, Livigno, Italy - February 17, 2026. Dylan Deschamps of Canada in action during his first run of the Men's Freeski Big Air Final REUTERS/Marko DjuricaMarko Djurica/Reuters
It wasn’t and he finished seventh among the 12 finalists.
Frostad’s track record did not seem to make him a podium contender. In Beijing 2022, he ranked 12th in big air. In World Cups and world championships, he was generally middle of the pack, sometimes a bit higher.
Megan Oldham will leave the Olympics as Canada’s big air champion. She won gold in the event on Monday evening on the same course in Livigno.
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