Winter Olympics 2026: Why Team GB gold on snow has been a long time coming
Olympic gold medals on snow have long seemed impossible for Team GB’s winter athletes. One hundred and two years to be exact.
But for those in the know, it was only a matter of time.
By winning the mixed team snowboard cross title in Livigno on Sunday, Charlotte Bankes and Huw Nightingale have written their way into the history books where they will forever be remembered as the first – but that has been a very real possibility for some time.
In 2018, Great Britain Snowsport set a target for Great Britain to be in the top five in snow sports by 2030.
It was a goal that would build on the success of snowboarder Jenny Jones, who became Team GB’s first medalist on snow with her 2014 bronze medal, the same color won four years later by freestyle skier Izzy Atkin and snowboarder Billy Morgan.
But it was also a goal that raised eyebrows and raised smiles, and perhaps with four years to go, that might still be a bit too ambitious; but the course of progress is undeniable.
In Bankes – both individually and with Nightingale – Great Britain has world champions on snow in Mia Brookes and Zoe Atkin. Overall there are multiple Crystal Globe winners, X Games and World Cup gold medalists.
Vicky Gosling, chief executive of UK Snowsport, told BBC Sport: “We say we have talent, we show talent at World Championships and World Cups, but everyone is looking at the Olympics because everything is beefed up.”
“Here we are, actually producing that gold. This is a huge thing for us.
“We said anything is possible. We have amazing British people with courage and incredible talent, it’s about unlocking that.
“People can see that this is actually possible and we can deliver Olympic medals.
“I hope we inspire future generations to reach for the snow domes and get ready because the future looks promising.”
Speaking after Sunday’s gold medal, Nightingale said: “What we’ve shown today is that we are becoming a top-flight country in snow sports and it’s great to see that for the kids.
“We inspire kids to hit the slopes, snowboard, ski or whatever, just try winter sports.
“As a nation, we can do great things if we get young kids involved.”
