Beijing 2022 Olympic Winter Games / Olympics.com

Ivanie Blondin, Isabelle Weidemann and Valerie Maltais  did not allow the hostile weather elsewhere to impact their performance as they defended their Olympic crown in women’s team pursuit speedskating  to win third gold for Canada on the 11th day of Milano Cortina 2026 games.  They triumphed against the Netherlands in the final  for what turned out to be a close finish.

The same trio had  won the gold in 2022. The number of medal events were reduced to six from seven after the elements had their say on the programme. The women's snowboard slopestyle final was postponed till tomorrow due to bad weather.

Wherever the events continued, the athletes  continued to bask in the glory of their historic performances, whether on the snow or on the ice.

ALSO READ: Milano Cortina 2026: Courtney Sarault brings cheers to fans at home as Canada and USA set up summit clash in women’s hockey

Maltais had won Canada’s first medal in Italy with a bronze in the 3,000 metres on Day 1. Weidemann won three medals at the 2022 Olympics, while Blondin took two.

It was a sweet revenge for the Canadians as the Netherlands  had won gold in team pursuit at last year’s world single-distance championships, where Canada earned bronze. On way to the final, the Canadian trio had beaten the U.S. in the semi-finals.

Olympians, irrespective of the weather, deliver captivating performances, come rain, snow or shine!

The duality of the men’s freeski big air was on full display. At the top of the hill, it was fierce competition, at the bottom, it was a show of camaraderie as the athletes celebrated each other’s remarkable performances. Tormod Frostad prevailed with a stunning final throw of the dice, landing a competition-best to claim the gold medal. 

In the men’s bobsleigh two-man event, camaraderie was placed on ice as German Johannes Lochner won his first Olympic gold medal, denying compatriot Francesco Friedrich a historic three-peat.

In freestyle skiing, Tormod Frostad of Norway finished with a flourish for big air gold, 14th of his country in the Games to keep it at the top of the medals tally. He delivered a stunning competition-best 98.50 on his final jump to clinch the men’s freeski big air gold. 

Knocked into second place by U.S.A.’s Mac Forehand (193.25) on his final run, Frostad needed to produce something special to reclaim the top spot. Frostad did just that with his mic drop final run for a winning total of 195.50. Forehand claimed silver with Austria’s Matej Svancer finishing third with 191.25.

Leaders Norway became the first nation to cross the 30-mark in medals tally by adding two more golds to its tally. It has now 14 golds in a total of 31 followed by Italy’s ever biggest tally of 24 medals with nine golds. U.S.A. continued to be at number three six golds in a total of 21 medals while Japan led the Asian nations with a total of 19 medals, including four gold. Canada continued its move upwards by taking its tally to 12 with three gold.

The bobsleigh competition saw Johannes Lochner and Georg Fleischhauer win two-man event for Germany 1-2-3 as Johannes Lochner upgraded his silver medal from four years ago to upset the great Francesco Friedrich to win the men’s two-man event. Lochner and brakeman Georg Fleischhauer were the model of consistency, building their advantage over all four heats to claim a commanding victory in 3:39.70. 

With his silver medal, Friedrich became the joint most decorated bobsleigh driver in Olympic history, tying with compatriot André Lange. Friedrich and Lange each own four gold medals and a silver medal. Adam Ammour and Alexander Schaller rounded out the podium for a German 1-2-3.

The Nordic combined saw Jens Luraas Oftebro  of Norway grabbing his second gold  of the games. He ruled the roost, winning both individual gold medals on offer at Milano Cortina 2026 following his victory in the Gundersen large hill/10km on Feb. 17. The 25-year-old now boasts all three Nordic combined Olympic titles in his career, which also includes team event gold from Beijing 2022. 

Finishing the ski jumping round in fifth place, Oftebro turned in a stunning skiing performance in the cross-country race to wipe out his 22-second deficit. He moved into pole position on the final before crossing the finish in a winning time of 24:45.0. 

Austria’s Johannes Lamparter finished 5.9 seconds adrift for his second silver of the Games, with Finland’s Ilkka Herola finishing third.

In Biathlon, barrier-breaking Quentin Fillon-Maillet led France to men’s 4x7.5km relay gold. France held off a late charge from Norway to race to its first-ever Olympic gold medal in the men’s 4x7.5km biathlon relay at Milano Cortina 2026. To add to the landmark moment, Quentin Fillon-Maillet became the most decorated French Winter Olympian in history by winning his eighth career medal at the Games. 

The French quartet of Fillon-Maillet, Fabien Claude, Emilien Jacquelin, and Eric Perrot finished the race in 1:19:55.2, with defending champions Norway following just 9.8 seconds back. Sweden completed the podium in third place in 1:20:52.7.

In speed skating for women,  Canada defended its team pursuit crown by outpacing the Netherlands to claim its second consecutive speed skating gold medal in the women's team pursuit.  The trio of Ivanie Blondin, Valerie Maltais, and Isabelle Weidemann stormed to victory in a time of 2:55.81, nearly a second ahead of the Dutch skaters. Japan, the silver medallists from four years ago, again made it onto the podium with bronze after beating Team U.S.A. in the B-final. 

In speed skating for men, the home team had packed delights  for the home crowd  by  winning the team pursuit gold. The Italian speed skating trio of Davide Ghiotto, Andrea Giovannini, and Michele Malfatti won the hearts of  the home crowd with an emphatic win in the men’s team pursuit A final.

Finishing nearly five seconds ahead of Team U.S.A., the Italian trio won the race in 3:39.20.  In doing so, they won Italy’s first gold medal in the event since Turin 2006. Team U.S.A. settled for silver in 3:43.71, with the People’s Republic of China beating the Netherlands in the battle for bronze.]

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