Swiss skier Mathilde Gremaud, gold medalist in slopestyle and bronze medalist in big air at Beijing 2022, says her expectations for the Milan‑Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics remain high, with fierce competition from rivals such as China's Eileen Gu pushing her to perform at her best.
The Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics opened Friday with an unprecedented ceremony staged in two cities - Milan and Cortina d'Ampezzo. A total of around 2,900 athletes from more than 90 countries and regions will compete in 116 events across eight sports and 16 disciplines, with the Games set to run through Feb 22.
"I mean, I was just super stoked to be here, be healthy, and I had three starts at the Olympic Games and three medals. So my expectations are definitely high. I'm really here to have fun and show my best, and then I think we could have a good ending. And that's really the goal," said Gremaud in an interview with China Global Television Network (CGTN).
One of the standout rivalries at Milan-Cortina 2026 will unfold in the women's freestyle skiing events. Eileen Gu will aim to build on her success from Beijing 2022, where she claimed two gold medals and a silver. The athlete who denied Gu a clean sweep was Gremaud, who captured gold in the slopestyle event.
Gremaud recalled her "great rivalry" with Gu in 2022, and described the competition with her this year as "the biggest battle," where both of them would have to be "on point."
"That was a crazy day for sure, for the both of us. It was really tight results. And I feel like it could have been either or, I mean, the way it was judged, like I got a few little half points more, but it could have been the other way around, I feel like. But we've had great rivalry, for sure, over the years. She hasn't been really on the scene that much since, so it has been hard to compare. But I know she has been working hard, and she has skiing well, and so, it's definitely, I think the biggest battle is definitely between us, but there's a lot of great girls out there as well, and for the battle, to be between us, we also have to be on point the day that it matters. So that's also, personally, something that you have to achieve before talking about battle. So I'm focusing on myself, but I definitely know that when I land my run, when she lands her run, it's going to be tight, and it's going to be a battle, as always," she said.
"For sure, it's pushing me. It's probably getting the best out of me, in a good way, because I cannot just rely on doing it a little bit, and I have to push, and then she has to push, and no one's going to pull on the brake. Everyone's going to just go all in. And that's really cool," said Gremaud.
Swiss skier Mathilde Gremaud eyes Winter Olympics glory fueled by rivalry with Eileen Gu
More of China's A-share listed companies have disclosed major contract wins and full order books at the beginning of 2026, underscoring a solid start in the year and sending positive signals of a steady recovery and strong endogenous momentum in the country's economy.
Since the start of the year, more than 100 listed companies have announced major bid wins or contract signings, according to financial data company Wind data.
The newly secured orders span a wide range of sectors, from large-scale domestic infrastructure projects to international market cooperation, featuring sizable volumes and a diversified structure.
These developments have laid a sound foundation for corporate operations throughout the year while reinforcing confidence in China's economic recovery.
"Contracts worth over one billion yuan (around 144 million U.S. dollars) have been concentrated mainly in the infrastructure sector. Since the beginning of this year, listed companies have secured major project orders totaling more than 43 billion yuan (around 6.2 billion U.S. dollars). The launch of these projects has brought direct business support for enterprises while boosting market confidence in economic recovery, further vitalizing the industrial chain," said Tian Lihui, dean of the Institute of Finance and Development at Nankai University.
Infrastructure investment is also increasingly integrated with national strategies such as new energy and smart cities, with traditional infrastructure showing a clear trend toward intelligent and green upgrading.
In the ecological and environmental protection sector, several new projects worth hundreds of millions of yuan have been initiated, covering sanitation services, water conservation and waste treatment, highlighting green infrastructure as a new growth driver.
And a number of listed companies reported that overseas orders have significantly supported earnings growth.
With improving business performance, companies are becoming more proactive in disclosing order information, particularly during earnings forecast periods, to convey positive signals to the market.
Wind data show that more than 750 listed companies voluntarily disclosed order developments in 2025, accounting for 13.75 percent of the total.
Nearly 60 percent of companies with full orders are expected to see year-on-year net profit growth or significantly narrowed losses in 2025, with growth momentum likely to sustain into 2026.
Among them, 16 companies are projected to maintain net profit growth of over 10 percent from 2025 to 2027.
"The trend significantly reflects the longer-term vision of corporate performance, with the market now able to assess prospects over one or even two years rather than just a single quarter as before," said Zhang Yusheng, chief strategy analyst at Everbright Securities.
Industry observers believe that, amid sustained improvement in performance, the proactive disclosure of orders by listed companies helps stabilize market expectations, boost investor confidence and highlight growth potential, guiding capital toward high-quality enterprises.
A-share firms report strong order intake
