Norway's Ruud turns gray day into Olympic gold medal in slopestyle skiing

LIVIGNO, Italy (AP) — The new Olympic slopestyle skiing champion, Birk Ruud, smiled while he showed off his gold medal. Spread across the inside of his bottom lip, a still-fresh smear of blood.

That he gashed himself while falling off a rail and landing facedown during an otherwise-meaningless victory run seemed practically perfect for Tuesday, a day of spills and spinouts in which one of this sport's most important participants — the sun — never showed up.

“I was just trying to go beat myself up again,” Ruud said.

An hour or so earlier, on his first run of the day, the 25-year-old from Norway was one of the few who found his bearings amid the gray skies that, as silver medalist Alex Hall of the United States said, “made me have to go by feel.”

Add the terrible sightlines to the fact that none of the 12 skiers on this chilly mountian were going for second place — or fifth — and what resulted was a day full of crashes, with a few moments of beauty mixed in. All the skiers had three chances to make it down the mountain. Of those 36 runs, only eight ended without a fall.

“There’s no visibility and you can’t see the landing, so it’s hard to differentiate the landing from the sky,” explained Hall's American teammate, Mac Forehand, who struggled on the rails and came in 11th. “That kind of causes complications when you’re flipping through the air doing doubles and triples.”

Give them credit for trying.

The conversation might start with the fifth-place finisher, Jesper Tjader of Sweden. While most skiers this week have been happy simply to slide on and off the first rail without a mishap, Tjader climbed aboard by skiing backward, then doing a backflip and slamming his skis on the piece of metal that can't be more than about six inches wide.

“I had no choice but to do it, for sure,” he said. “That's what this sport is all about. It's about showing your best skiing to the people. It's not always about the result.”

Along those lines, American Konnor Ralph botched the rails section in his third and final attempt on his way to ninth place. He threw a triple-cork 1800 spin to finish the run anyway — dangerous on any day, amazing on this one.

“Everyone came into today thinking the other dudes are so good, I’m going to have to try my hardest possible run,” Hall said. “When you try your hardest possible run, even with three runs, you don’t always put it down.”

Third-place finisher Luca Harrington of New Zealand said “today was a battle, and it was a battle for all of us."

Hall's silver medal goes with the gold he won four years ago in Beijing, even though he said everything he tried this time was more difficult. It was also the first medal of any color for the U.S. over a week-plus of action in snowboarding and freestyle skiing, a pair of sports where they used to set the pace.

The American said the rails portion in Livigno is as tough as these skiers have seen. The first time he landed the entire portion on this hill wasn't in practice or qualifying two days earlier, but rather, in the second run of the final — the run that gave him the silver medal.

“He had one or two things he could have done more on the jumps, but it was such a battle to get a full top-to-bottom going together," U.S. freeski coach Dave Euler said. "We're just so stoked to see him land that run,”

After watching eight of the 11 skiers before him fall in the first round, Ruud said he felt a sense of relief after landing his run, which turned out to be the winner. This gold in Italy goes with the big air title he won at the Beijing Games four years ago.

In the third and final round, seven skiers before him had one final chance to deliver a performance that could knock Ruud off the top of the podium. Every one of them fell. Then, Ruud figured if you beat them, you can join them, too.

“I was trying to go all-in,” he explained of a victory run he refused to water down, even if it meant nothing.

But he spun off the rail, landed facedown and lost a ski before snapping it back on and making it down the hill safely. A few minutes later, bloodied but not beaten, Ruud was wearing the gold medal.

AP Olympics: https://apnews.com/hub/milan-cortina-2026-winter-olympics

Silver medalist United States' Alex Hall holds an American flag after the men's freestyle skiing slopestyle finals at the 2026 Winter Olympics, in Livigno, Italy, Tuesday, Feb. 10, 2026. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull)

United States' Alex Hall competes during the men's freestyle skiing slopestyle finals at the 2026 Winter Olympics, in Livigno, Italy, Tuesday, Feb. 10, 2026. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull)

Norway's Birk Ruud competes during the men's freestyle skiing slopestyle finals at the 2026 Winter Olympics, in Livigno, Italy, Tuesday, Feb. 10, 2026. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull)

Norway's Birk Ruud celebrates his run during the men's freestyle skiing slopestyle finals at the 2026 Winter Olympics, in Livigno, Italy, Tuesday, Feb. 10, 2026. (AP Photo/Abbie Parr)

Norway's Birk Ruud licks the blood from his lip after winning the gold medal in the men's freestyle skiing slopestyle finals at the 2026 Winter Olympics, in Livigno, Italy, Tuesday, Feb. 10, 2026. (AP Photo/Abbie Parr)

MILAN (AP) — Ukrainian figure skater Kyrylo Marsak was exhausted last summer as he trained for the upcoming Milan Cortina Winter Games.

Drained, anxious and often unable to sleep, the 21-year-old could not stop thinking about his family back in Ukraine: His father is in the army on the front lines and his mother is in Kyiv, while his grandparents are dodging drone attacks in his hometown of Kherson. Still, he forced himself to prepare for his first Olympics.

Marsak moved to Finland to train in safety shortly after the war began, but the conflict has a long reach.

“It is really affecting the way we live, the way we think, the way we practice as well,” he told The Associated Press on Sunday in Milan.

Marsak, who ultimately sought help through therapy and medication, is channeling his feelings into his program for men's singles figure skating as the fourth anniversary of Russia's full-scale invasion approaches.

When he competes Tuesday in the short program as Ukraine's lone figure skater in Milan, the 21-year-old will skate to “Fall On Me" by crossover tenor Andrea Bocelli and his son Matteo.

Marsak and his father, Andriy, see themselves in the song that unites the Bocelli family. Marsak last saw his father during the Ukrainian nationals in April, when Andriy was able to get military leave to attend the competition and witnessed his son win his third title before returning to the front lines.

“Even though we cannot see each other, we are still together, we still feel this connection between us," the figure skater said.

After Tuesday, the top 24 of 29 skaters will move to Friday's free skate event. Marsak is competing against favorites like Ilia Malinin, the American “Quad God” whose stunning free skate Sunday secured the gold medal for the U.S. team, and Japanese sensation Shun Sato.

If Marsak makes it through, he'll wear a costume designed by his mother, who traveled from Kyiv to Milan this week to watch him compete.

His free skate program is set to a combination of “I’m Tired” and “The Feels.” He said the songs, both by Labrinth and Zendaya, represent his skating journey amid a war that's destroyed much of his country — including the ice rink in Kherson where he learned to skate.

“Thanks to skating, I'm still living,” he said. “It's the place where I feel alive and where I can show all of my emotions.”

The Russia-Ukraine War has taken a heavy toll on Ukrainian sport. Athletes were displaced or called up to fight. Soccer matches are often interrupted by air raid sirens and attendance is capped by bomb shelter capacity. Elite skaters, skiers and biathletes usually train abroad, with attacks and frequent blackouts shuttering local facilities.

In northern Ukraine, young cross-country skiers have been training in a bombed-out complex where sirens regularly pierce the air.

Nevertheless, Ukraine has managed to send 46 athletes to Milan Cortina, ranging from Marsak to six cross-country skiers and 10 biathletes.

Matvii Bidnyi, Ukraine’s minister of youth and sports, said the athletes aim to send an important message to Russia and the rest of the world.

“We have the opportunity to raise our flag to show that Ukraine is resilient, Ukraine is still in power,” he said. “We have a will to win and we continue to be one of the most successful sport teams in the world because success in sports always was a part of the Ukrainian national brand.”

Ukrainian-born ice dancer Vadym Kolesnik, meanwhile, competed for the U.S. Monday after obtaining American citizenship last summer. Kolesnik’s family has endured the ongoing war in Ukraine, with his brother enlisting in the army and his father’s business destroyed. But the 24-year-old finally reunited with two family members from Ukraine on Saturday after four years apart, thanks to a successful GoFundMe campaign that paid for their flights to Milan.

Kolesnik and his ice dance partner, Emilea Zingas, came in sixth place Monday during the rhythm dance. They will compete Wednesday in the free dance.

Dave Skretta in Milan contributed to this report.

AP Olympic coverage: https://apnews.com/hub/milan-cortina-2026-winter-olympics

Ukrainian figure skater Kyrylo Marsak walks outside the Milan ice skating arena on his way to practice his routine, at the 2026 Winter Olympics, in Milan, Italy, Sunday, Feb. 8, 2026. (AP Photo/Vasilisa Stepanenko)

Ukrainian figure skater Kyrylo Marsak poses for a photo outside the Milan ice skating arena on his way to practice his routine, at the 2026 Winter Olympics, in Milan, Italy, Sunday, Feb. 8, 2026. (AP Photo/Vasilisa Stepanenko)