Australia’s Josie Baff held off a late surge from former champion Eva Adamczykova to win Winter Olympics gold in the women’s snowboard cross overnight — giving her nation two gold medals in as many days, having shaken off illness and a victory drought.
Baff, 23, crossed the line in Livigno just 0.04 seconds ahead her Czech rival, who won the event at the 2014 Sochi Games. Italy’s Michela Moioli, the gold medallist from Pyeongchang 2018, took bronze while Swiss teenager Noemie Wiedmer had to settle for fourth spot.
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Wiedmer made the running in the early stages of the race but Baff overtook her on the inside to hit the front, opening up a significant lead.
Adamczykova, 32, pushed hard as the competitors went over the final bump but Baff just held on.
“That is how you write your name into the history books. What a run,” commentator Dave Culbert said on Channel 9.
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The Aussie was elated after crossing the line, dropping to the snow as the realisation hit that she was an Olympic champion. On the dias, she burst into tears after looking down at the gold medal around her neck.
The monumental win came nearly three years after the last of her two individual World Cup event victories.
“It’s amazing. I can’t really believe it, I knew I could do it and I knew deep down I had what it took,” Baff told Channel 9.
“I haven’t won in a very long time, so to be able to win here at this event and to have one of the world’s most sought-after gold medals around my neck is absolutely incredible.
“I wouldn’t change anything for the world, I’m so happy and thankful to all of my techs and my coaches and the team around and all of my friends and family here, I truly couldn’t have done it without them.
“It hasn’t been easy, I had flu at the start of the week. I actually am just in shock, I’m so happy.”
She became Australia’s second gold medallist of the Milano Cortina 2026 Games, after world No.20 Cooper Woods delivered a monumental upset one day earlier in the men’s moguls.
Baff also became just the eighth Aussie Winter Olympics gold medallist in history, joining Woods, Steven Bradbury (speed skating), Alisa Camplin (aerials), Dale Begg-Smith (moguls), Torah Bright (halfpipe), Lydia Lassila (aerials) and Jakara Anthony (moguls).
Baff hails from the Snowy Mountains region of NSW. She is a former Youth Olympics champion (2020) and world championships silver medallist (2023).
She also entered the Olympics in decent form but had a slow start to her event, placing just 17th in the seedings run before a stunning surge to glory.
Remarkably, Baff’s partner — Canadian Eliott Grondin — won silver in the men’s snowboard cross the day prior.
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