Mari Fukada Wins Gold Medal for Snowboarding Slopestyle at Olympics 2026

Japan's Mari Fukada was delayed, but not denied.

After the women's snowboarding slopestyle final at the 2026 Milano Cortina Winter Olympics was postponed from Tuesday to Wednesday due to a heavy snowstorm in Livigno, Italy, Fukada brought home the gold medal with a score of 87.83 in her third run.

The slopestyle competition features snowboarders performing tricks on rails and catching big air from jumping off ramps. The final podium from Wednesday's event is as follows:

• Gold: Mari Fukada, Japan (87.83)
• Silver: Zoi Sadowski-Synnott, New Zealand (87.48)
• Bronze: Kokomo Murase, Japan (85.80)

New Zealand's Zoi Sadowski-Synnott, who was hoping to win a second straight Olympic gold medal in the slopestyle competition, earned the silver medal after scoring 87.48 on her third run. She had placed first in Sunday's qualifying round. Despite falling short of the gold, her fifth career Olympic medal makes her the most decorated snowboarder, male or female, ever to compete in the Winter Games.

It should be noted that the USA Network broadcast vocally criticized the judging throughout the women's slopestyle final, calling out how the rail section seemed to be given more weight than the jumps. One of the commentators called the judging on Sadowski-Synnott's third run "abysmal."

Team USA's Jessica Perlmutter, who was the youngest competitor in Wednesday's event at 16 years old, placed sixth after scoring 68.18 on her second run.

The women's slopestyle final was the final snowboarding event at the 2026 Milano Cortina Winter Olympics, capping off an exciting showcase of some of the best extreme sports athletes in the world.