Who Had the Best Olympic Gold Ski Performance? Here's What 1,000 Skiers Think.
It’s Sunday, and you know what that means—we’re back with the results of another POWDER Weekly Poll, thanks to the Department of Polls and Skier Opinion.
The subject of this week's debate was Olympians. This time, we wanted to know which one put on the best gold medal performance (to be more exact: we wanted to know about skiers—we’ve yet to broach the subject of curling).
Keep reading to see what more than 1,000 skiers had to say when asked: Which Olympic skiing gold medal was the most impressive?
POWDER Weekly Poll Results
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Poll Highlights
- Total Votes: 1,070
- Most Popular Choice: Mikaela Shiffrin in Slalom (358 votes, 33% of voters)
- Least Popular Choice: Eileen Gu in Halfpipe (107 votes, 10% of voters)
Photo: Jeff PACHOUD/AFP via Getty Images
Poll Observations
- First and foremost, it was a relief not to see a single option dominating this poll. Many of the past few polls we’ve run have had slam-dunk winners, particularly those that have involved gear. This time, though, we saw a nice, relatively even spread.
- Mikaela Shiffrin’s lead in this poll came as no surprise. Aside from Lindsey Vonn, she’s likely the most visible and well-known member of the skiers on Team USA. Also, she had a captivating arc at these Games. Despite being the winningest racer of all time, she hadn’t claimed an Olympic medal since 2018, sparking narratives and speculation. Shiffrin, of course, didn’t need another medal, but her slalom gold only boosts her already unrivalled legacy—and it made for a nice story.
- Halfpipe was a real treat this year. In the men's field, Alex Ferreira snuck in at the last second, lacing a squeaky clean run that earned him his long-coveted gold. There was plenty of competition that night. Nick Goepper, another American, came close but crashed out. And there was the young Estonian, Henry Sildaru, who shot out of relative obscurity to claim silver. Among the women, Eileen Gu extended her six-Olympic-event medal streak after winning halfpipe gold. Since she first appeared in the Olympics in 2022, she hasn't placed lower than second, further cementing her status as a generational talent.
ultramarinphoto/Getty Images
What We Could’ve Done Better
- At the risk of sounding like a broken record, more than four options would’ve gone a long way for this poll. We don’t do a ton of cross-country coverage (there isn’t supposed to be powder on the cross-country trails, after all), but how about Johannes Klaebo’s six Olympic gold medals? Or Tormod Frostad’s stylish big air victory? Federica Brignone’s double gold header in alpine racing was memorable, too. With just four slots, though, we went with the names we thought were most recognizable to North Americans. Inevitably, that left a lot of noteworthy talent on the table. In the end, we're stoked about everyone who gave it their all—it's been an exciting few weeks.
About the POWDER Weekly Poll
We launch our weekly polls at 3 p.m. Eastern Time every Monday. They remain open until 12:00 p.m. Eastern Time the following Friday, with the results dropping on Sunday at 9 a.m. Eastern Time. You can participate and see the results right here on our website or by visiting our Instagram page.
While you’re at it, drop us a line or leave an Instagram comment if there’s a poll you’d like to see next. Skiers have plenty of opinions and preferences, and we want to know which ones might land on top of the heap.