Franjo von Allmen. / Picture by Alexis Boichard

There was no stopping Franjo von Allmen from becoming the first to complete a hat trick of gold medals at the Milano Cortina 2026 as the fifth day turned out to be historic in more than one way. From the frightening Alpine ski speeds to the roller-coaster ride down the ice track, it was a day to remember.

It was the Cortina Sliding Centre that was the cynosure of all eyes as it bore witness to some breakthrough moments. In another victory for gender equality, the first-ever women’s doubles luge champions were crowned at the Winter Games.

Italy added the frosting on the icy cake, delighting local fans by winning both the men’s and women’s doubles competitions.

ALSO READ: Europe's dominance continues unabated in Milano Cortina 2026

While Canada added a bronze — Piper Gilles and Paul Poirier (217.74) finishing third in ice dance — to take its tally to four medals, the U.S. climbed to the No. 2 spot with four gold, six silver and two bronze medals. Norway continued to lead with seven gold, two silver and four bronze medals.

The hero of the day, however, was Swiss speed merchant Franjo von Allmen, who successfully demonstrated that lightning could strike three times as he raced to a historic “three-in-one” feat, becoming the first athlete of the ongoing Games to get three gold medals under his belt. His latest triumph was in the Super-G.

The 24-year-old Swiss Alpine skiing sensation showed nerves of steel to top the Super-G standings with a stunning time of 1:25.32. He beat Ryan Cochran-Siegle of the United States into second place, with Swiss compatriot Marco Odermatt finishing third.

In his dream debut, von Allmen became only the third male Alpine skier to win three gold medals at the same Olympics. He is also the first Swiss skier to achieve this feat.

“It’s completely surrealistic what’s going on today and the whole Olympics,” a delighted von Allmen told reporters after the race.

“For the moment, I’m feeling like I am dreaming, but I’m not sure. I don’t hope I wake up,” he added.

Silver medalist Cochran-Siegle faced a nervous wait until all the favorites had finished their runs to confirm he had made it onto the podium. Yet the U.S. athlete said he felt his early start position suited him in his quest for glory.

“Today was about really trying to trust my skiing and knowing the course was in good condition,” he said. “Having an early bib was an advantage. And it's nice to put down a run top to bottom where I felt like I was really pushing in the right way.”

For Odermatt, the name on everyone's lips prior to these Olympic Games, third place in the Super-G was a bittersweet reward for his efforts.

“I won bronze,” he said. “You have to be happy if you win an Olympic medal, but I wanted a little bit more. I wanted the gold medal.

“It was a good run. On the bottom I made some little mistakes, two or three times. That's where I lost the gold medal.”

American speed-skating superstar Jordan Stolz blazed to victory in the men’s 1,000m, clocking an Olympic record time of 1:06.28. The 21-year-old Stolz became the first non-Dutch Olympic champion in the men's 1,000m since Vancouver 2010.

The world record holder in the event raced home 0.50 seconds ahead of silver medalist Jenning de Boo of the Netherlands. China’s Ning Zhongyan rounded out the podium with bronze in 1:07.34.

ALSO READ: Milano Cortina Winter Olympic Games start

Elizabeth Lemley safely navigated her way to victory, upsetting defending champion Jakara Anthony in the freestyle skiing women’s moguls. The 20-year-old Lemley posted a winning score of 82.30 points, with compatriot Jaelin Kauf (80.77) claiming a second Olympic silver in this event. France's Perrine Laffont (78.00), the champion from PyeongChang 2018, bagged bronze. Anthony of Australia relinquished her crown after slipping on the last run of the final.

Norway continued among the medals as Jens Luraas Oftebro launched a late charge on the final lap to race to victory in the Nordic combined individual Gundersen normal hill/10km.

The 25-year-old added another feather to his cap after winning team gold for Norway in the large hill event at Beijing 2022, as well as individual silver on the large hill.

Austria’s Johannes Lamparter stayed with Oftebro but had to settle for silver, finishing a second behind the Norwegian. Finland’s Eero Hirvonen took bronze.

The hosts Italy blitzed to double gold in the men’s and women’s luge competitions.

Andrea Voetter and Marion Oberhofer set up the double with a stunning historic first women’s doubles luge gold medal at the Winter Olympic Games.

The speedy duo were the fastest on both runs to beat Germany’s Dajana Eitberger and Magdalena Matschina by just 0.022 seconds. Two-time Austrian world champions Selina Egle and Lara Kipp finished third.

Emanuel Rieder and Simon Kainzwaldner lapped up the pressure of racing on home ice, surging from third to first to claim the men’s doubles gold medal for Italy.

Austria’s Thomas Steu and Wolfgang Kindl finished second, with German legends Tobias Wendl and Tobias Arlt settling for bronze, falling short of a historic “four-peat.”

France's Julia Simon missed just one target on her way to victory in the women’s 15km biathlon individual to claim her second gold of Milano Cortina 2026.

Simon finished the race nearly a minute ahead of compatriot Lou Jeanmonnot for a French 1-2 podium finish. Bulgaria's Lora Hristova delivered the performance of her life to secure bronze.

Frenchman Guillaume Cizeron successfully defended his ice dance title with new partner Laurence Fournier Beaudry, with a winning total of 225.82. Cizeron became the first ice dancer to claim gold in the discipline twice at the Winter Games with two different partners.

The pair narrowly beat the U.S. team of Madison Chock and Evan Bates (224.39), with Canada’s Piper Gilles and Paul Poirier (217.74) finishing third.

Discover more stories at NewIndiaAbroad