LIVIGNO, Italy (AP) — Given the injuries he’s overcome in the past month, there’s no blaming defending Olympic champion Ayumu Hirano for just being happy to be here. The halfpipe riders trying to take his title at the Milan Cortina Games made it clear Wednesday night they don’t share that feeling.

The first snowboarding gold medal has been handed out at the Milan Cortina 2026 Games, after Japan's Kira Kimura took gold in men's big air on Saturday. Now, it's the women's turn.

To qualify for the 2026 Winter Olympics, speed skaters both must earn qualifying points at four World Cup events which precede the Games and achieve the times set by the International Skating Union (ISU) for their respective distances.

LIVIGNO, Italy (AP) — Japan's mastery in snowboarding might very well go beyond the halfpipe. Hiroto Ogiwara finished at the top of the scoreboard in qualifying for big air Thursday night —- making the 20-year-old a legit gold-medal contender at the 2026 Winter Olympics for the country that boasts the reigning halfpipe champion,

Torrance, Wrightwood and Palos Verdes will be represented in the Milan Cortina Olympics women's halfpipe snowboard final.