At the 2022 Winter Olympics, Alpine skier Ryan Cochran-Siegle (USA) shocked the world when he claimed a silver medal in the super-G. Four years later, in Bormio, the 33-year-old proved the performance was far from a fluke.
RCS secured super-G silver once again with a stellar run on the Stelvio slopes Wednesday. He finished 0.13 seconds behind the victor.
"I was just happy to ski how I wanted to ski today," he told Heather Cox, post-race. "I mean, it's super emotional. It's great.
Franjo von Allmen (SUI) etched his name in Olympic history, winning his third gold medal in five days in his Winter Olympic debut. With the victory, he became the fourth Alpine skier ever to taste gold three times at a single Winter Games. The last male Alpine skier to do that was Jean-Claude Killy (FRA) in 1968.
Rounding out the top three was the Swiss superstar Odermatt, the event's favorite (+0.28). He left race day with his second medal of the Games and third of his career. He now has a medal of each color in his collection.
Von Allmen has been able to accomplish what many thought was written in the stars for his fellow countryman Odermatt. Arguably the greatest male skier of his generation, "Odi" came in with the legitimate chance to win gold in four different events (the team combined, downhill, super-G and giant slalom). He'll have a shot at GS gold on Saturday, Feb. 14.
Meanwhile, Cochran-Siegle's hardware-worthy result came after a disappointing downhill run on Saturday. NBC Sports analyst (and two-time Olympic gold medalist) Ted Ligety revealed that heading into the race, RCS "redecorated the gondola" as he dealt with a bout of food poisoning.
"Coming into these Games, I was so focused on the downhill," he revealed. "Felt like that was my opportunity. But super-G, she's a fickle lover at times, knowing that anything could happen."
The Burlington, Vermont, native recovered — just enough at least — to throw down one of the great performances of his life. As of this writing, he is the fourth American Alpine skier (and first man) to capture a medal at the 2026 Olympics, joining Breezy Johnson, Jackie Wiles and Paula Moltzan.
Barbara Cochran, Ryan's mom, who won gold at the 1972 Sapporo Games — 54 years to the day before Ryan got silver in Bormio — cheered her son on from the bottom of the piste. His fiancé Jessie was also in attendance.
"I was selfish and I wasn't sure if I wanted my mom to come here, just because it is such a big event," he admitted. "She was a little sick the last few days too, so I got to see her from a balcony yesterday, but I haven't actually seen her in person, [that'll] be nice. And then obviously, Jesse, too. She's a huge part of my life. Sharing this moment with them is cool. I did not expect this, but obviously it's nice to bring home some hardware."
Cochran-Siegle wore the No. 3 bib, meaning he left the starting gate third out of 42 racers. He had to wait and watch as the world's fastest speed skiers made their way down the mountain.
"I knew the conditions weren't probably going to be that favorable going through the race. When Marco [Odermatt] came down behind me I felt like I knew [I was good] because he is such an incredible skier. On any given day he can win. But yeah, it was definitely through [Vincent] Kriechmayr as well. It was slow wave moments of high emotion and now we're kind of settling in. I definitely can't believe it."
Five racers on Wednesday did not finish, including home country hero and 2026 downhill bronze medalist Dominik Paris (ITA) and American River Radamus. Paris' DNF was particularly peculiar, given that his right ski flew off his foot as he was seemingly in control and moving at 70 miles per hour. It appeared he had some kind of binding issue.
Meanwhile, Radamus missed a gate after he was unable to firmly plant his inside ski on a turn, causing him to skid too far off line and making it impossible to recover in time.
The super-G action continues Thursday when Sofia Goggia (ITA), Jackie Wiles (USA) and the fastest women on skis hit the Cortina slopes. Coverage starts at 5:30 a.m. ET and streams live on Peacock and NBCOlympics.com.