Milano Cortina 2026: Anna Odine Strøm wins Olympic gold ahead of Eirin Maria Kvandal

We report from Predazzo, Italy.

Anna Odine Strøm won the Olympic title in the women's large hill at Milano Cortina 2026. Team-mate Eirin Maria Kvandal finished second and Slovenia's Nika Prevc took bronze. Strøm, who earlier in these Games won the normal hill and picked up a silver in the mixed team event, admitted to NRK that she does not enjoy all the attention that comes with the success and would prefer to go home and sleep.

“I'm not much of a social person — it's a bit much,” Strøm said when asked if she would celebrate. She added that she is grateful for the experience and will try to take things one day at a time. Kvandal, meanwhile, said she definitely planned to celebrate that evening despite an early start the next morning.

This was the first time women competed in the large hill at the Olympic Games. With this win Strøm also became the first woman to claim two individual Olympic golds at a single Games.

Norway's performance was emphatic: at one point four Norwegians led the standings after the first round, and the team ended up with two athletes on the podium and others close behind. Silje Opseth placed fifth and Heidi Dyhre Traaserud jumped to sixth. NRK expert Maren Lundby called it "one of the great Norwegian jumping days of all time," and commentator Christian Nilssen said it will be remembered as such.

Several athletes and experts also commented on difficult and changing wind conditions. The wind shifted during the competition, affecting many jumpers; some called for pauses when conditions became very gusty. Canadian Abigail Strate, who finished eleventh, said she had bad luck in the first round but learned a lot from the experience.

Coach and hoppsjef Jan‑Erik Aalbu praised the team: taking a double and finishing with athletes in fifth and sixth is "something of the craziest we've seen in Norwegian jumping at an Olympics," he said. Head coach Christian Meyer described the delivery as unparalleled. The Norwegian camp celebrated a historic day for women's ski jumping.

Results (medalists):

• Gold: Anna Odine Strøm (NOR)
• Silver: Eirin Maria Kvandal (NOR)
• Bronze: Nika Prevc (SLO)

Event: Olympic women's large hill, Milano Cortina 2026. Venue: Predazzo, Italy.