Freestyle Skiing was first introduced at the Winter Olympics as a demonstration sport in 1988 but its popularity has grown ever since and there will be a record total of 15 different events under the Freestyle Skiing umbrella in the men's, women's and mixed competition at the 2026 Milano Cortina Games.
Dates
The Freestyle Skiing programme at the Winter Olympics starts on Saturday 7th February with the Women's Freeski Slopestyle Qualification and comes to an end on Saturday 21st February following the conclusion of the Women's Freeski Halfpipe Final.
Events
The 2026 Winter Olympics features a total of 15 Freestyle Skiing events, two more than in Beijing four years ago. There are seven events on both the men's and women's schedule and one mixed event.
Men's events
Moguls
Aerials
Ski cross
Half-pipe
Slopestyle
Big Air
Dual Moguls
Women's events
Moguls
Aerials
Ski cross
Half-pipe
Slopestyle
Big Air
Dual Moguls
Mixed event
Team Aerials
Format
Freestyle Skiing can consist of an individual skier performing aerial flips and spins and skiers sliding rails and boxes on their skis. Freestyle Skiing is also commonly shortened to Freeskiing, while it is known by various other names around the world.
Moguls are when a competitor takes on a series of bumps on a trail as they perform short-radius turns. The skiers are judged on their technique and speed as they attempt to master the bumps on the course.
Dual moguls see two competitors race head-to-head on side-by-side courses, usually featuring two jumps, using a knock-out, bracket-style format.
This exciting event is making its Olympic debut at the 2026 Milano Cortina games, with judges factoring in turns, air performance and speed when scoring.
Aerials are when skiers use 2-4 meter jumps, which propel them up to six meters in the air. Aerialist skiers perform multiple flips and twists in the air before landing on a 34-39-degree inclined landing hill.
Competitors receive a score made up of jump takeoff (20%), jump form (50%) and landing (30%), while a degree of difficulty is also factored in for a total score.
In this year's Winter Olympics there are individual men's and women's Aerials medals up for grabs and also a mixed Team Aerials event.
Ski cross is based on the snowboarding boardercross. It is usually a timed racing event across traditional Freestyle Skiing terrain.
Half-pipe skiing, which became a Winter Olympic event in 2014, is when competitors ride snow skis on a half-pipe, gradually making their way to the end of the pipe by doing flips and tricks.
Slopestyle features athletes skiing or snowboarding down a course containing a variety of obstacles, including rails, jumps and other terrain park elements. Points are awarded for amplitude, originality and quality of trick.
Big Air is a Freestyle Skiing discipline which sees skiers launch themselves off a single massive jump, performing complex aerial tricks - spins, flips and grabs - before attempting a clean landing.
Judges rate jumps out of 100 based on amplitude, execution, and landing.
Venues
The Freestyle Skiing events at the 2026 Winter Olympics will be held in Livigno, in the Valtellina region of Italy.
The events will take place at the internationally-renowned Livigno Aerials & Moguls Park on the southwest slope of the Livigno Valley.
The venue has hosted the FIS Freestyle Skiing World Cup finals and the Aerials & Moguls Olympic Test Event in 2025.
History
Freestyle skiing began in the 1960s, and was initially called 'hotdogging' because it involved a mix of acrobatic moves, aerials, and adrenaline.
It was officially recognised as a ski discipline by the International Ski Federation in 1979 and, after being a demonstration sport at the Calgary 1988 Games, moguls were introduced as a medal sport at the Albertville 1992 Games.
Other events have been added in the subsequent Winter Olympics with men's and women's dual moguls the next to debut at the 2026 Milano Cortina Games.
Team GB Freestyle Skiing prospects
Team GB confirmed its eight competitors for the Freestyle Skiing events at the 2026 Winter Olympics last month.
Gus Kenworthy and Liam Richards will take part in the Men's Half-pipe, Chris McCormick goes in the Men's Big Air and Slopestyle, while Kirsty Muir is the representative in the Women's Big Air and Women's Slopestyle events.
Zoe Atkin is preparing for the Women's Half-pipe, Mateo Jeannesson takes part in the Men's Moguls and Men's Dual Moguls, Makayla Gerken Schofield is the entrant for the Women's Moguls and Women's Dual Moguls and Oliver Davies is the Team GB hope in the Men's Ski cross event.
None of the British skiers are expected to compete for a medal with Team GB having only ever won one medal in the sport previously.
Team GB Freestyle Skiing medals
Izzy Atkin is Team GB's first and only Olympic medallist in Freestyle Skiing after winning bronze in the slopestyle competition at the 2018 Games in PyeongChang.
