After a narrow Olympic loss, snowboarder Scotty James looks toward 2030

LIVIGNO, Italy (AP) — Scotty James was right. The sun did, in fact, rise Saturday morning, even if it was snowing hard at the halfpipe where he came oh-so-close to living out his Olympic dream the night before.

The Aussie snowboarder spent a lifetime trying to reach this moment. When his moment came, he came an agonizing half-turn short of winning the Olympic gold medal that has eluded him. He said he has every intention of staying in the sport, likely for another run at the gold four years from now.

For now, though, a chance to process what just happened. For an athlete who left home and moved to America at age 12 to see just how far he could go in this sport, a second silver medal was nothing to be ashamed of. That's why, in the aftermath, some smiles broke through the inevitable tears.

“It's OK to be upset, it's all right to cry. It's OK to get frustrated, and it's OK to not achieve exactly what you want,” said the 31-year-old James. “Because tomorrow the sun will rise, I'll give the medal to my son, he won't even know what it is, but it'll be a proud moment to give it to him.”

As his documentary that dropped earlier this winter showed, James has it all. He lives in Monaco, has a wife who's the daughter of a billionaire. His son, Leo, is closing in on 18 months old.

That gold medal was, however, the one thing missing — the “elephant in the room" he called it.

It's why the tears flowed freely from the eyes of his mother, Celia, and why his father, Phil, said the evening left him feeling proud, but “a bit flat.”

“I don’t think people really get the work they put in," Celia James said. "All these guys, but if you’re from Australia, you’re away from home a lot from a very young age. I think today is probably a day he thought was going to be a day that was the gold, the reward for it all. And silver is good, but I just think for him, it’s not going to be the reward he wanted.”

James admitted as much.

He'll be 35 at the next Olympics. Japan, which placed four riders among the top seven in Friday's contest, including the man who won, 24-year-old Yuto Totsuka, will only get better and deeper.

In many ways, those riders from Japan have turned these halfpipe contests into an aerial show. They are tremendous snowboarders doing amazing things. James has always been more into the soul of the sport, feeling a really difficult spin or a great grab of the board means as much, or more, than a triple cork.

In his mind, it's a fight worth fighting while he's still healthy and still waking up every day thinking about what else might be possible on that 5-foot-long piece of wood and fiberglass.

Someone asked him: “What is Scotty James' ‘Why?’”

He dissolved into tears, and spoke about his family, friends and support staff that have followed him around the world, pursuing his dream.

“It's a loaded question," he said. “My ‘why’ would be, I want to leave my footprint on the sport, but also the industry. That's sometihng I strive for every day. It's what I get up for. I'm up there for myself and what I can accomplish in the halfpipe. But also to share that with the people who support me.”

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

Silver medalist Australia's Scotty James reacts as he arrives for the medal ceremony after the men's snowboarding halfpipe finals at the 2026 Winter Olympics, in Livigno, Italy, Friday, Feb. 13, 2026. (AP Photo/Abbie Parr)

Silver medalist Australia's Scotty James, left, celebrates with gold medalist Japan's Yuto Totsuka after the men's snowboarding halfpipe finals at the 2026 Winter Olympics, in Livigno, Italy, Friday, Feb. 13, 2026. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull)

Australia's Scotty James reacts during the men's snowboarding halfpipe finals at the 2026 Winter Olympics, in Livigno, Italy, Friday, Feb. 13, 2026. (AP Photo/Abbie Parr)

Silver medalist Australia's Scotty James holds an Australian flag after the men's snowboarding halfpipe finals at the 2026 Winter Olympics, in Livigno, Italy, Friday, Feb. 13, 2026. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull)

MILWAUKEE (AP) — Giannis Antetokounmpo says he’s healthy and wants to play even as the Milwaukee Bucks continue to say the two-time MVP is too injured to take the floor.

Antetokounmpo missed a 10th straight game on Friday night against the Boston Celtics due to what the team has described as a left knee hyperextension and bone bruise. Antetokounmpo hasn’t played since landing awkwardly during a March 15 victory over the Indiana Pacers.

“I’m healthy,” Antetokounmpo told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel and The Athletic before Friday’s game. “I hate it when people force me to do things against my nature. I’m a player. I get paid to play.”

For the last couple of weeks, Antetokounmpo has participated in pregame warmups without showing any apparent signs of injury.

Antetokounmpo also noted that the Bucks should have known this about him since the 31-year-old has spent his entire 13-year career in Milwaukee.

Throughout that time, Antetokounmpo has had a reputation for rapid returns from injury, most notably when he hyperextended his knee during Milwaukee’s 2021 playoff run but missed two games before returning to lead the Bucks to their first title in half a century.

“You know who you’re dealing with,” Antetokounmpo told reporters. “So, for somebody to come and tell me to not play or to not compete, it’s like a slap in my face.”

Bucks coach Doc Rivers addressed Antetokounmpo's comments after the 133-101 loss to Boston.

“The tough part about all this is that I’m in the middle and I have nothing to do with it,” Rivers said. “Coaches don’t decide any of this. The problem with our league is the coaches are the ones sitting out front. And we have to sit here and answer this stuff. I think there are two sides to this, I will tell you that, but I don’t want to get too involved in it.”

The Bucks still had a remote chance of earning a 10th straight playoff berth at the time of that Indiana game, but they were officially eliminated from contention last week. There’s also the possibility of Antetokounmpo getting hurt again if he returns to action — he has missed a career-high 41 games this season and had two extended absences due to calf strains.

“I understand the circumstances — yes, we’re not going to be in the playoffs,” Antetokounmpo said. “For some people’s eyes, it’s not worth it for me to be out there. But for me, it’s something that goes against my nature.”

Rivers said he has a “great relationship” with Antetokounmpo and that he often talks to the superstar about what to work on and what to add to his game. Rivers added that he didn't like the “he-said, she-said” nature of this dispute and added that “this is a grown man's game, and it should be handled that way by everybody.”

“I just don’t like that this is so public," Rivers said. "This is where grown men get in a room and they talk it out. Whether they agree or disagree, that doesn’t matter. But this should not be public, and I don’t like that.”

Antetokounmpo also wanted the opportunity to play alongside his younger brother, Alex, who made his NBA debut Sunday. There was a possibility of three Antetokounmpo brothers playing alongside each other in the same game, since Giannis’ older brother, Thanasis, also is on the Bucks.

“When my dad passed away, I pretty much raised (Alex),” Antetokounmpo said. “He’s able to be on the team and suit up and chase an opportunity to be great. You really think I don’t want to suit up and play with my brother? Anybody who thinks that is an idiot.”

Thanasis and Alex both played in the closing minutes Friday night, the first time the two brothers had played together in an NBA game.

Antetokounmpo’s desire to play — and the Bucks’ wishes to rest him — drew the attention of the National Basketball Players Association last month.

“The Player Participation Policy was designed by the league to hold teams accountable and ensure that when an All-Star like Giannis Antetokounmpo is healthy and ready to play, he is on the court,” the union said in a statement. “Unfortunately, anti-tanking policies are only as effective as their enforcement; fans, broadcast partners, and the integrity of the game itself will continue to suffer as long as ownership goes unchecked. We look forward to collaborating with the NBA on meaningful new proposals that will directly address and discourage tanking.”

This dispute between Antetokounmpo and the Bucks comes at a time when his future in Milwaukee is uncertain. Antetokounmpo’s name dominated league-wide discussions leading up to the trade deadline, though the Bucks ultimately kept him.

Antetokounmpo becomes eligible to sign a four-year contract extension worth up to $275 million in October. If he doesn’t sign the extension, Antetokounmpo could become a free agent after the 2026-27 season, or the Bucks could decide to trade him beforehand.

Now they find themselves at odds over how to handle the rest of this season.

“I don't think there's a bad person in this group - none of the guys that I'm talking about,” Rivers said. "They're all good people. But we've got to figure out how to put good people on the same page, and it stays inside. I've never been a fan of negotiating in the media. I don't think it's good for anybody.

Antetokounmpo had his own take on how this could be resolved.

“I don’t know where the relationship goes from there,” Antetokounmpo said. “We’ve got to go to couples therapy.”

AP NBA: https://apnews.com/hub/nba

Injured Milwaukee Bucks' Giannis Antetokounmpo, center right, talks with an official, center left, during the first half of an NBA basketball game against the Boston Celtics, Friday, April 3, 2026, in Milwaukee. (AP Photo/Aaron Gash)