Eight athletes have been conditionally selected to represent the New Zealand Team at the Milano Cortina 2026 Olympic Winter Games, subject to the NZOC receiving a quota for each event. 

This is the first wave of selection, with the potential for more athletes to be named in January 2026 after European winter performances.

The eight athletes selected will be hoping to build on New Zealand’s most successful Winter Olympic Games at Beijing 2022, where Kiwi athletes claimed a silver and two gold medals.

New Zealand’s most decorated Winter Olympian, Zoi Sadowski-Synnott (Wānaka) made history in Beijing and is back to take to the slopes in the Big Air and Slopestyle. She won New Zealand’s first Winter Olympic gold medal in Snowboard Slopestyle, alongside a silver in Big Air. She also won a Big Air bronze medal at PyeongChang 2018.

Zoi has three Snowboard Slopestyle World Championships to her name. In 2025 alone, she claimed four World Cup podiums (including three gold), a gold and bronze at X Games, and capped the year as the first Kiwi female to bring home the FIS Crystal Globe for topping the overall Snowboard Slopestyle World Cup standings.

In men’s Freeski, Luca Harrington (Wānaka) is selected to the team having represented New Zealand at the Lausanne 2020 Winter Youth Olympic Games where he claimed bronze in Freeski Halfpipe.

He will be looking to capitalise on a standout 2024-25 season where he stood on five World Cup podiums, notching two wins, while also claiming gold and silver on X Games debut. He won the Freeski Big Air World Championship, marking the first time a Kiwi skier has held this title, he was also the first Kiwi to win a Freeski Crystal Globe.

In 2025, Luca and fellow NZ Team athlete Ben Barclay (Wānaka) shared an historic World Cup Slopestyle podium - the first time two Kiwis have stood on a Park & Pipe podium together.

Ben, who finished 10th in Freeski Slopestyle at Beijing 2022, New Zealand’s best Olympic result in the discipline, brings further experience to the NZ Team for Milano Cortina having stood on multiple World Cup podiums throughout his career.

In the Halfpipe, Fin Melville Ives (Wānaka) is selected for his first Olympic Winter Games and goes in as the reigning Freeski Halfpipe World Champion.

Fin claimed the World title on his debut at the World Championships this season and can lay claim to a further World Cup gold earlier in 2025. He was part of the NZ Team’s most successful Winter Youth Olympic Games at Gangwon 2024, where he won the silver medal in Freeski Halfpipe.

Fin’s twin brother Cam Melville Ives (Wānaka) also brings Winter Youth Olympic experience to the team, having competed at Gangwon 2024 where he claimed bronze in Snowboard Big Air.

A strong 2025 season saw Cam secure multiple podiums on the European Cup circuit as well as a fifth-place finish in Halfpipe at his debut World Championships in 2025.

At 17-years-old, Luke Harrold (Wānaka) completes this selection of athletes to the NZ Team.

In 2023, Luke was the youngest Kiwi to podium at a World Cup event, before making history at the 2025 World Championships by landing the first ‘triple corked rotation’ in a Freeski Halfpipe competition, where he finished fourth. He was part of the successful Gangwon 2024 Winter Youth Olympic team, picking up bronze in the Freeski Big Air and gold in the Halfpipe.

In addition, Alice Robinson (Queenstown) returns for her third Olympic Games after competing at PyeongChang 2018 and Beijing 2022, joined by Ruby Star Andrews (Queenstown).

New Zealand Olympic Committee CEO Nicki Nicol congratulated the athletes on stamping their boarding passes for Milano Cortina 2026.

“We’re extremely proud to have each and every one of them wear the fern and represent the New Zealand Team in Italy next year. I also want to wish those athletes still in contention for selection the best of luck in the coming months of competition over in Europe.”

Snow Sports NZ chief executive Nic Cavanagh said the lineup of athletes “reflects years of hard work and dedication to their sport, and I am looking forward to watching them all in action in Milano Cortina”.

The Milano Cortina 2026 Olympic Winter Games will take place from February 6-22, 2026 across Italian alpine venues.

There is expected to be a further athlete selection announcement in January 2026.