China’s Eileen Gu says she’s skiing better than ever ahead of Winter Olympic golds defence
With big air and halfpipe still to come, skier says slopestyle silver medal-winning run was a big confidence boost
Eileen Gu believes she is skiing better than ever and will approach her next two events at the Winter Olympics with “a real sense of confidence”, despite missing out on slopestyle gold on Monday.
The Chinese skier was narrowly beaten by Switzerland’s Mathilde Gremaud for the second Games running, while Canada’s Megan Oldham took bronze in the Italian Alps.
Gremaud’s medal chest also includes a silver in slopestyle from the 2018 Games and a bronze in big air from 2022. Gu, meanwhile, has the silver from four years ago, alongside the two gold she won in Beijing in big air and halfpipe.
It is those two titles she will focus on next, despite revealing she had not competed in the former since 2022.
“I feel good on my skis. I feel good on my feet,” Gu said. “I’m walking out of this [slopestyle] contest healthy and with a real sense of confidence. I am so happy with the way I’m skiing.