Future spin: a trick with a degree of rotation that’s higher than the current year.

Freeskiing already “spun into the future,” as the saying goes, back in 2022 when the first 2160 was landed during a competition. But this so-called time travel has only accelerated since then.

In the year 2025, we witnessed the first 2340 — just one indicator of the sport’s continued progression since the last Winter Olympics. Some familiar names have been at the forefront of that progression, but there’s been a few new ones, too.

Below is a deep dive into the biggest developments, new names to know and more for each freeski park and pipe event at the 2026 Milan Cortina Games.

Nick Goepper's switch from slopestyle to halfpipe is already paying dividends.

U.S. Ski and Snowboard/@briecoops

What are the major storylines?

The United States, once again set to field a strong halfpipe team at the Winter Games, boasts the two leading contenders for gold. Both names should be familiar to Olympic fans, but for different reasons.

First up is Alex Ferreira. The 31-year-old already owns silver and bronze medals but is seeking a gold to complete his collection. After a perfect 2023-24 season — he won all seven contests he entered — Ferreira briefly positioned himself as the heavy favorite for Milan Cortina.

Then there’s Nick Goepper, the former slopestyle skier who won medals at each of the last three Olympics. Since pivoting to halfpipe two seasons ago (after a brief retirement), Goepper has steadily improved and has now emerged as a legitimate rival to Ferreira, a fact cemented by his win at X Games in January.

For now, double cork 1620s remain the must-have trick for halfpipe skiers, but Ferreira has already attempted to push the sport’s progression with a double cork 1800 attempt. Goepper has incorporated a unique trick, a bone air 900, into his contest runs and could potentially increase the rotation on that trick next season.

Beyond those two, the U.S. team is deep. Of the top 10 skiers in last season’s World Cup standings, seven were American. Only four can be named to the roster for the Milan Cortina Games, though.

Ferreira has already secured his spot, and barring a surprise, Goepper should make the team too. That leaves just two spots. The leading candidates include two-time Olympic champion David Wise, 2023 World Cup champion Birk Irving and X Games bronze medalist Hunter Hess, and the competition for those spots will be one of the biggest storylines ahead of the Winter Games.

Who’s in and who’s out?

Men’s freeski halfpipe will have a new Olympic champion, as Nico Porteous has stepped away from halfpipe competition. The 23-year-old from New Zealand started racking up accolades from a young age — he won Olympic bronze in 2018 and gold in 2022, in addition to X Games and world titles. Porteous competed sparingly in the years following the Beijing Games before officially announcing his career shift in June. He plans to stay active in skiing in other ways.

Meanwhile, Gus Kenworthy is preparing to come out of retirement to make a run at a fourth Winter Olympics. The (soon-to-be) 34-year-old won a silver medal in slopestyle for the U.S. at the 2014 Sochi Games before he started competing for Great Britain, focusing exclusively on halfpipe ahead of Beijing 2022. Kenworthy hasn’t entered a contest since the last Olympics but announced in May that he’d return to the World Cup circuit this winter.

Who are some of the new stars?

• Finley Melville Ives (NZL): While Ferreira and Goepper are the leading contenders for gold, this 19-year-old isn’t far behind. Melville Ives is fresh off a breakout season in which he won his first World Cup event and then won gold at the world championships. His twin brother, Campbell Melville Ives, competes in snowboard halfpipe.
• Luke Harrold (NZL): Although Porteous has retired, New Zealand continues to have a bright future in halfpipe skiing thanks to Melville Ives and 17-year-old Harrold. After earning his first World Cup podium two seasons ago, Harrold received his first X Games invite in January.
• Hunter Hess (USA): Hess made his World Cup debut back in 2015 but has not yet competed at the Winter Olympics. As evidenced by his strong results from the current cycle — he’s finished third at X Games in back-to-back years and was the World Cup runner-up for the 2023-24 season — that could change at Milan Cortina. During a training session four years ago, Hess became the first skier to land a triple cork in a halfpipe. No skier has landed that trick in a contest yet.
• Jon Sallinen (FIN): After competing in Beijing as a 21-year-old — you may remember him from this viral incident — Sallinen took a huge leap forward. He won his first World Cup event, finished third at X Games and earned a silver medal at the world championships, all in 2023. Sallinen was in the top four of the World Cup standings for two straight years but missed all of last season with a torn ACL and MCL.

Eileen Gu has been nearly unbeatable in the halfpipe since the last Winter Olympics.

FIS

What are the major storylines?

After winning medals in all three freeski disciplines at the last Winter Olympics, Eileen Gu has competed primarily in halfpipe contests over the last few years. She’s been nearly unbeatable in this event, winning nine of the 10 World Cup contests she’s entered since the last Olympics, in addition to taking X Games gold in 2024. The only skier to beat Gu during that time has been Canada’s Amy Fraser.

The only thing slowing Gu down has been injuries. She’s had to withdraw from most X Games events over the past three years, with her 2024 halfpipe gold coming despite “an unprecedented level of pain” due to a hip injury.

Along with Fraser, Gu’s biggest challengers at the moment include reigning world champion Zoe Atkin of Great Britan and China’s Li Fanghui, a pair of 22-year-olds who shared the World Cup title last season.

There’s also 2018 Olympic champion (and 2022 silver medalist) Cassie Sharpe, who returned to competition last winter after a two-season hiatus. The Canadian star considered retirement after giving birth to her first child in August 2023 before ultimately deciding to make a comeback. In January 2025, she won her first X Games title in six years, proving that she’s back in the mix ahead of Milan Cortina.

Who’s in and who’s out?

Two stalwarts of the U.S. team have called it quits after long, accomplished careers. Devin Logan, the 2014 slopestyle silver medalist who also competed in halfpipe, and Brita Sigourney, the 2018 halfpipe bronze medalist, both retired from competitive skiing after three Winter Olympic appearances apiece.

Who are some of the new stars?

• Svea Irving (USA): The 23-year-old was the top American on the World Cup circuit last season and won a bronze medal at the 2023 X Games. Her brother, Birk Irving, competes in men’s freeski halfpipe and finished fifth at the last Olympics.
• Riley Jacobs (USA): Jacobs, 22, was the top American during the 2023-24 World Cup season with a fourth-place overall finish. She missed the majority of last season, however, due to a torn ACL.

Team USA's Troy Podmilsak, who was just 18 at the time, captured the men's freeski big air world title in 2023.

FIS/Miha Matavz

What are the major storylines?

Men’s slopestyle and big air arguably have been the two most wide-open events on the freeski park and pipe program.

Over the last three seasons, the World Cup circuit has had three different slopestyle champions (Birk Ruud, Mac Forehand, Alex Hall) and three different big air champions (Birk Ruud, Alex Hall, Luca Harrington).

Similarly, X Games has had three different slopestyle champions (Colby Stevenson, Birk Ruud, Luca Harrington) and three different big air champions (Mac Forehand, Troy Podmilsak, Miro Tabanelli) during that time.

That list doesn’t even include Andri Ragettli, who has finished in the top three of the World Cup standings in 10 of the last 11 seasons, or Matej Svancer, who won World Cup contests in both slopestyle and big air last season.

Meanwhile, the sport has been progressing to new levels, particularly in big air. In 2023, Podmilsak became the first skier to land a triple cork 2160. A year later, Ruud landed a switch version of that trick. Then came the first-ever 2340, which was landed by Tabanelli at the 2025 X Games.

Who’s in and who’s out?

The U.S., which swept the men’s slopestyle podium in 2014, remains one of the strongest countries in these events. Three of the four Olympians from the Beijing Games (Hall, Forehand, Stevenson) are still active in slopestyle and can be considered legitimate gold-medal contenders, assuming they all make the team for Milan Cortina.

The one skier not returning to compete in these events is Nick Goepper, the three-time Olympic slopestyle medalist who — as mentioned in an earlier section — switched to halfpipe during this cycle.

Swedish star Henrik Harlaut, the 2022 Olympic big air bronze medalist, has not competed in any World Cup events over the last three years but has made a few appearances at X Games. His plans for the upcoming season, including whether he will make a run at a fourth Winter Olympics, haven’t officially been confirmed yet after he missed last season recovering from a dislocated hip.

Who are some of the new stars?

• Miro Tabanelli (ITA): One of the host nation’s top medal hopes for the Milan Cortina Games, Tabanelli won his first X Games title in January when he became the first skier to land a 2340 in a contest. His younger sister, Flora Tabanelli, is the newly minted world champion in women’s freeski big air.
• Luca Harrington (NZL): On the heels of a breakout season, this 21-year-old has quickly established himself as a medal threat in both disciplines. He’ll enter these Winter Olympics as the reigning world champion in big air but also won X Games gold in slopestyle last season despite being added to the field at the last minute as an alternate. His brother, Ben Harrington, competed in halfpipe at the Beijing Games.
• Troy Podmilsak (USA): Podmilsak, 21, is one of the new names on the deep U.S. team competing for a spot on the Olympic roster. He was the first skier to land a triple cork 2160, and that trick helped him win big air gold at the 2023 World Championships and 2024 X Games.
• Henry Sildaru (EST): It’s rare for an athlete to compete in all three freeski events at a single Winter Olympics, but this 19-year-old Estonian could add his name to that list. Sildaru competes in all three disciplines, but his strongest results last year mostly came in slopestyle. His older sister is Kelly Sildaru, the prodigious freeski talent who earned bronze in women’s freeski slopestyle at the last Olympics.

Italy's Flora Tabanelli won a gold medal in big air at the 2025 World Championships as part of her breakout season.

FIS/Miha Matavz

What are the major storylines?

Triple corks have arrived in women’s freeskiing. At the 2023 X Games, Canada’s Megan Oldham, who was 21 at the time, became the first woman to land the trick in a contest.

No other woman skier has matched Oldham’s feat yet, but with an Olympic year on the horizon, could that change?

Oldham landed the triple cork in the X Games big air event — she ended up winning gold — but she’s been strong in slopestyle as well. She’s one of several riders who have established themselves as gold-medal contenders in both disciplines.

Reigning Olympic slopestyle champion Mathilde Gremaud of Switzerland won back-to-back world titles in that discipline in 2023 and 2025. France’s Tess Ledeux has won the last two X Games slopestyle titles, in addition to winning big air gold at the 2023 World Championships and 2024 X Games.

Then there’s Italian teenager Flora Tabanelli, who burst onto the scene and swept just about every major big air title on offer last season.

The wild card in all this has been Eileen Gu, who has predominantly competed in halfpipe events when healthy. Although she’s the reigning Olympic gold medalist in big air, Gu has not competed in that discipline on the World Cup circuit or at X Games since Beijing. Her two World Cup starts in slopestyle have resulted in one victory and one runner-up finish.

Who’s in and who’s out?

It’s been a lengthy road to recovery for American Marin Hamill since tearing her ACL and meniscus at the Beijing Games. A second surgery and subsequent complications resulted in Hamill missing two full seasons before finally returning to competition last winter. Hamill had a pair of fourth-place finishes last year and finished sixth overall in the slopestyle World Cup standings.

One freeskier who won’t be competing at the Milan Cortina Games is seven-time X Games medalist Johanne Killi. The Norwegian star finally won her first slopestyle World Cup title in 2023 before announcing her retirement from competition.

Who are some of the new stars?

• Flora Tabanelli (ITA): A meteoric ascent has Tabanelli, who will be 18 come the Milan Cortina Games, poised to be one of the biggest stars for the Olympic host nation. She won World Cup events in both slopestyle and big air last season en route to capturing the overall park and pipe title, and also won big air gold at the world championships and at X Games. Her brother, Miro Tabanelli, is a medal contender in men’s freeski big air.
• Rell Harwood (USA): The 24-year-old was the top American in both slopestyle and big air last season, as she earned her first two World Cup podiums and finished fourth in the slopestyle standings. Unfortunately, Harwood’s breakout season ended with a torn ACL, but she hopes to return to competition later this year and earn a spot on the U.S. Olympic team. It’s Harwood’s second ACL tear — the first one caused her to miss the entire 2021-22 season, including the Beijing Winter Olympics.

Learn about the biggest developments in other events ahead of the 2026 Winter Olympics.