Olympic aerials competition kicks off in Livigno, Italy, as 25 skiers in both the women's and men's disciplines attempt to make it past the qualifications round on Tuesday.

The Olympic aerials format consists of two qualification rounds followed by two final rounds. The top six advance directly to the final after the first round of qualification, while those who did not qualify compete for the remaining six spots in the second round. Athletes’ scores are made up of air, form, and landing evaluations, with form making up 50 percent of the scoring.

Leading the charge are the members of the Chinese aerials team, who boast over 60 World Cup victories between them. China’s reigning Olympic champions both have returned to the medal mix after taking some time off, with Qi Guangpu winning back-to-back men's World Cup titles in men’s aerials while Xu Mengtao claimed her seventh Crystal Globe after finishing atop the women's World Cup standings this season.

Sun Jiaxu and Li Tianma join Qi in the race for Olympic gold. All three finished the season in the top spots in the World Cup standings, with Sun taking home the coveted Crystal Globe. High risk reaps high rewards, and Team China takes that motto to heart. The Chinese aerialists are known for their gravity-defying tricks, ranking among the best in the world for daring to attempt five twists. While the results vary from competition to competition, successful landings on tricks with five twists can give China significant leads (over 10 points) in final competition standings. Wang Xindi, another aficionado of the five-twist trick, rounds out the Chinese team. 

Ukraine's Dmytro Kotovskyi and Switzerland's Noe Roth are perhaps the only two in the field who can challenge the Chinese team. Both landed tricks with five twists in previous competitions, with Kotovskyi taking a win in Lac-Beauport, Canada, this season and Roth claiming the 2025 World Championships. However, their landings are few and far between, and a potential misstep could cost them dearly.

Americans Quinn Dehlinger, Chris Lillis, Connor Curran and Derek Krueger join the men's field in top form. Dehlinger in particular is enjoying a breakthrough past few years with back-to-back silver medals at the world championships. Lillis returns to the Olympic Games after helping the U.S. win gold in mixed team aerials in 2022. Krueger and Curran make their Olympic debut coming off top-five finishes on the World Cup circuit this season.

Like the men, the Chinese women are some of the best aerials skiers in the world. Their ability to consistently land clean full-full-fulls — one of the most difficult tricks in women's aerials — makes them tough to beat. Kong Fanyu joined Xu as a consistent executor of triples this season, finishing right behind her in the World Cup standings. The 2018 aerials bronze medalist faced disappointment in Beijing with a 6th-place finish.

But Xu and Kong aren't the only ones with triples up their sleeve.

Kaila Kuhn (USA) recently landed her first clean full-full-full of the season to upset Xu in Lake Placid, New York, to win her first career World Cup victory. Kuhn is the youngest American to win an individual aerials world title. At 21, it was her first major victory in any senior-level event. She will be looking to improve on her 8th-place finish in Beijing as she makes a bid for gold.

Teammate Winter Vinecki landed her own full-full-full earlier this year to claim her first World Cup win of the season. Vinecki, who finished 2nd in the 2023-24 World Cup standings for women's aerials, missed most of last season due to a herniated disc but opted to let it heal naturally. Although she's still finding her way back to her peak form, she's not one to count out when it matters the most.

Australia's Laura Peel is another consistent challenger to the Chinese. At her best, the Aussie can go jump-for-jump with Xu and Fang. Her full-full-full in Lac-Beauport, Canada, earned her a World Cup victory. Her teammate, Danielle Scott, opts for an easier yet cleaner route, competing with double full-fulls and relying on points earned from cleaner landings rather than from the level of difficulty.

Kyra Dossa (USA) and Tasia Tanner (USA) will make their Olympic debuts on Tuesday. Both skiers achieved top-four results on the World Cup stage during the leadup to the Games.