Industry News
Czech athlete Ester Ledecká, the only Olympian to have won Olympic Gold in different disciplines, Alpine skiing and snowboarding, will be forced to choose between her two disciplines at the 2026 Milan Cortina Winter Olympics after officials decided not to adjust the schedule. On February 8, Ledecká is set to compete in two events that are nearly simultaneous and take place in different Italian mountain towns hours apart—the women’s Downhill in Cortina d’Ampezzo at 11:30 a.m. and the Parallel Giant Slalom snowboarding event in Livigno, with qualifications running from 9 a.m. to 11 a.m. and finals at 1 p.m.
With a four-hour drive between the venues, competing in both is logistically impossible, leaving Ledecká with a difficult decision: attempt to defend her snowboarding title and go for a historic three-time Olympic Championship, or chase a medal in the Olympic Downhill, the king discipline in Alpine skiing.
Ledecká, 29, stunned the world in 2018 when she became the first athlete to win Olympic gold in both Alpine skiing and snowboarding, claiming a shock victory in the Super-G before winning the snowboarding Parallel Giant Slalom event a week later. She defended her snowboard title in Beijing 2022, while also competing in Alpine events, finishing fifth in Super-G and fourth in the Combined.
Despite her unmatched ability in both disciplines, the 2026 Olympic schedule presents her with an unprecedented conflict. The Czech star had hoped for an adjustment, lobbying through her national Olympic committee for a schedule change, as has been done in the past for track and field athletes such as Allyson Felix and Michael Johnson. However, no alterations have been made, meaning she will have to forgo one of her signature events.
For now, Ledecká appears to be favoring snowboarding, where she has dominated with 25 World Cup wins in 63 starts. A victory in Livigno would make her the first woman to win three consecutive Olympic golds in the discipline. Additionally, by choosing snowboarding, she would still have a chance to compete in skiing’s Super-G a few days later. On the other hand, the Olympic Downhill is a career-defining event in Alpine skiing, and Ledecká has proven she can win on the biggest stage, with four World Cup victories and 11 podiums in 88 career ski starts. Downhill is certainly her strongest discipline. While she is tied in victories with two World Cup victories in Downhill and two in Super-G, seven out of her 11 podiums, were in Downhill and only three in Super-G, while one was in Alpine Combined. Furthermore, Ledecká won Bronze in Downhill at the recent World Championships in Saalbach, Austria.
Regardless of which event she chooses, Ledecká’s unique career as a dual-discipline champion has already cemented her place in Olympic history. However, the scheduling conflict means that one of the greatest all-around winter sports athletes will be unable to showcase the full extent of her abilities on the world’s biggest stage.
