Buffs at the Winter Olympics: Live Updates
- Quinn Kreck
- Feb 9
- 6 min read
Updated: Feb 18
The Winter Olympics have officially kicked off in Milano Cortina, Italy, and the University of Colorado is well-represented. Eight current or former Buffs qualified for their respective countries to compete.
Seven of the eight Buffs are competing in various skiing events, while the final Buff is competing in snowboarding. Stacy Gaskill (snowboarding), Svea Irving (freestyle skiing), Joanne Reid (biathlon) and Ryder Sarchett (alpine skiing) represent the USA.
Alvar Alev (cross-country skiing) represents Estonia, Cass Gray (alpine skiing) for Canada, Hugo Hinckfuss (cross-country skiing) for Australia, and Jakob Moch (cross-country skiing) for Germany.
Some events are streamed live on NBC, with complete coverage on Peacock.
Sunday, Feb. 8:
Men’s Cross-Country 10K + 10K Skiathlon: (Alev, Hinckfuss, Moch)
In the cross-country 10K + 10K skiathlon, skiers start in a line next to each other, then they ski 10K in classic technique. For the classic technique, skiers glide on an etched-out track for the first 10K. They then switch skis, poles and technique for the final 10K. The free technique begins in the final 10K, where skiers ditch the track and “skate” to the finish line.
All Buff athletes finished the cross-country 10K + 10K, with Moch leading the three. The current freshman finished 33rd overall out of 74 starters with a time of 49:08.9. Alev was not far behind, finishing 38th overall and 19 seconds behind with a final time of 49.27.7. For Australia, Hinckfuss finished 56th with a final time of 53.21.6.
Norwegian skier Johannes Hoesflot Klaebo took home the gold with a final time of 46:11.0.
Women’s Downhill Final: (Gray)
In downhill skiing, one skier starts at the top of a course and skis down through the largest gates in alpine skiing, which leads to the fastest times. Each skier gets three training days (this year's day one was cancelled), and then only gets one attempt that counts on the longest course in alpine skiing.
Former NCAA giant slalom national champion Gray finished 26th out of 36 starters with a final time of 1:41.99. She was the only Canadian skier to finish the final, with her teammate, Valerie Grenier, disqualified for violating a timing rule because of a pole strap issue.
Team USA’s Breezy Johnson won gold with a final time of 1:36.1, narrowly edging out Germany’s Emma Aicher by .04 seconds.
Wednesday, Feb. 11:
Cross-Country Sprint Classic: (Hinkfuss)
In a cross-country sprint classic, skiers use classic technique in a short track race (about 1.6 kilometers in this year’s Olympics). Skiers are eliminated in a qualification round, with the top 30 fastest times entering the quarterfinals in five groups of six.
Then the skiers all race at the same time, with the top two from each group advancing to the semifinals in two groups of six. The top two from each group and the two fastest times from either group make the final. In the final, the first skier to cross the finish line wins gold.
Hinkfuss did not make it out of the qualifying round, finishing 42nd out of 94 starters. His final time was 3:23.41, 5.68 seconds slower than Sweden’s Johan Haeggstroem, who finished 30th.
Norway’s Høsflot Klaebo won gold in the final race, his second in as many events.
Biathlon 15K Individual: (Reid)
In the biathlon 15K, women ski 15 kilometers, stopping at four shooting ranges along the way. At the range, skiers shoot five shots at five targets from 50 meters away, with each miss adding one minute to their total time. The fastest time to complete the skiing and shooting wins the gold medal.
Reid, a former Buff, is an Olympic veteran, with Milano-Cortina marking her third appearance in the Games. Her attempt this year in the biathlon 15K was her worst finish in the Olympics yet (22nd in 2018, 57th in 2022), finishing 68th out of 90 starters with a final time of 48:08.7.
France finished first and second in the event, with Julia Simon winning gold (41:15.6) and Lou Jeanmonnot winning silver (42:08.7).
Friday, Feb. 13
Snowboard Cross: (Gaskill)
In snowboard cross, four snowboarders race each other on a course with jumps and turns to be the first to cross the finish line. Thirty-two riders qualify and start in eight groups of four, with the top two making it to the quarterfinals.
They continue to race in groups of four, with the top two making it out of the quarterfinals, then into the semifinals, until only four remain for the final.
Gaskill came into these Olympics ready to prove herself after recovering from a torn ACL in Dec. of 2024. She had performed well in cross in the past, placing seventh in Beijing in 2022. In this year's cross, Gaskill made it to the quarterfinal before she was eliminated and finished 14th overall.
Australia’s Josie Baff took home the country's first-ever gold medal in women’s snowboard cross.
Saturday, Feb. 14:
Men’s Alpine Giant Slalom: (Sarchett)
In alpine giant slalom, skiers go down the second-shortest alpine skiing course through gates. The gates are wider than regular slalom, leading to longer turns. Skiers make two runs, with the fastest combined time winning gold.
Sarchett, a former national champion with CU, was one of two U.S. skiers to finish the alpine giant slalom. In his two runs, he finished in 1:18.72 (29th) and 1:11.39 (21st) for a combined time of 2:30.11, putting him in 25th out of 69 skiers.
In another first, Brazil’s Lucas Pinheiro Braathen won the country and the continent’s first-ever winter Olympics gold with a final combined time of 2:25.00.
Biathlon 7.5K Sprint: (Reid)
In the biathlon 7.5K, women ski 7.5 kilometers, stopping at two shooting ranges along the way. At the range, skiers shoot five shots at five targets from 50M away while either standing up or in a prone position. If a skier misses, they are forced to complete a 150-meter penalty loop that adds to their time. The fastest time to complete the skiing and shooting wins the gold medal.
In her second event of the Olympics, Reid finished with her second-best placement in the 7.5K sprint in her Olympic history. Her final time of 24:01.9 put her in 72nd out of 91 skiers. 72nd is in between her Beijing finish (34th) and her PyeongChang finish (86th).
Norway’s Maren Kirkeeide took home gold with a zero-penalty run and a final time of 20:40.8.
Sunday, Feb. 15:
Women’s Alpine Giant Slalom: (Gray)
In her second event, Gray did not finish. She failed to make it past her first attempt.
The host country’s Federica Brignone won gold with a final time of 2:13.50.
Cross-Country 10K Freestyle: (Alev, Hinkfuss, Moch)
In the cross-country 10K freestyle, skiers are released in intervals on the same track where they ski in the freestyle technique the whole time. Free events are the only interval style skiing events, meaning that the skier with the fastest time wins gold.
The 10K freestyle was another Buff-packed event with Alev, Hinkfuss and Moch facing off once again. This time, Alev led the pack, finishing 28th with a final time of 22:10.2. Moch was the next Buff, finishing 37th with a final time of 22:25.0. Bringing up the rear for the Buffs again was Hinkfuss, who finished with a final time of 23:43.4, 66th of 111 skiers.
For his third straight gold medal, Norway’s Hoesflot Klaebo’s final time of 20:36.2 put him on top once again.
Snowboard Mixed Team Cross: (Gaskill)
In mixed snowboard cross, Olympians are in teams of two, one woman and one man. Four men compete against each other, then four women, with their times behind the leader of each race being added. The mixed team cross begins in the quarterfinals with four groups of four. The top two teams from each group move on to the semifinals in two groups of four. Then the final four teams race for the podium.
Gaskill teamed up with Nathan Pare on the U.S.’s second team. Pare finished the men’s race in second place, .08 seconds behind France’s Loan Bozzolo. In Gaskill’s race, she caught an edge less than halfway down the track and crashed. She would officially be listed as DNF, and Team USA 2 would be eliminated in the quarterfinals.
Team Great Britain 1 took the mixed team cross gold, with Huw Nightingale coming in second in the men’s final race by .14 of a second and Charlotte Bankes winning the final women’s race.
What’s Next:
Wednesday, Feb. 18:
Cross-Country Team Freestyle Sprint: (Hinkfuss) 2:15 AM MST (10:15 AM CET)
Biathlon 4×6 K Relay: (Reid) 6:45 AM MST (2:45 PM CET)
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