Federica Brignone said on Thursday that she had surpassed her own expectations after winning gold in the women’s Super-G at the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics.
The 35-year-old Italian alpine skiing star secured her first Olympic gold with a winning time of 1:23.41, finishing ahead of France’s Romane Miradoli and Austria’s Cornelia Huetter. The victory delivered Italy’s fifth medal of the Games and the 14th overall, further strengthening the host nation’s position in the medals table.
Brignone’s triumph followed an intense race against time to regain fitness after breaking her leg in a heavy fall in Val di Fassa in April. Speaking to Rai Sport, she admitted that even reaching the Olympic start line had once seemed uncertain, let alone standing on the top step of the podium.
“I focused on skiing and tried to do my best. […] it was do-or-die, but I didn’t think I could win gold,” Brignone said. “I never expected to become Olympic champion after the injury, never in my life. It’s something special.”
She explained that the absence of pressure played a key role in her performance. Brignone said she felt like an outsider and approached the race with a calm mindset, determined to give everything without chasing perfection. “I was relaxed. I wanted to ski fluidly and smoothly, doing the bends as fast as possible,” she said.
Italian President Sergio Mattarella watched from the stands as Brignone completed her winning run. Still visibly emotional afterwards, she told Rai television that the adrenaline was still flowing and described the moment as “incredible”.
Brignone already held the status of the most successful Italian woman in World Cup alpine skiing history. Her 37 World Cup victories place her behind only Alberto Tomba, who recorded 50 wins across both men’s and women’s competitions. Despite that record, she had never previously won Olympic gold, having collected two silvers and a bronze at past Games, alongside two world championship titles.
Italy went into the sixth day of competition at Milano Cortina 2026 in third place in the medals table. On Wednesday, Andrea Voetter and Marion Oberhofer won the women’s doubles luge, while Emanuel Rieder and Simon Kainzwaldner claimed gold in the men’s doubles event, taking the home team’s medal count to 13, including four golds.
Earlier in the week, Italy also won the mixed 2,000-metre short-track speed skating relay, while Francesca Lollobrigida captured gold in the women’s 3,000-metre speed skating on Saturday, underlining a strong start to the Games for the host nation.
