"Competitive Spirit Overcame My Fear"
Overcoming the pain of injury and the fear of failure to script a dramatic come-from-behind victory, Choi Gaon beamed as she said, "I think the competitive spirit (the desire to win) that I developed while growing up together with the older athletes really helped me overcome my fear."
On the 12th (local time), Choi Gaon, who won the women's snowboard halfpipe final at the 2026 Milan-Cortina d'Ampezzo Winter Olympics held at Livigno Snowpark in Italy, is holding a gold medal in her hand and tearing up. Yonhap News
Choi Gaon, who delivered the Korean delegation its first gold medal in the women's ski snowboard halfpipe at the 2026 Milan-Cortina d'Ampezzo Winter Olympics, spoke at a press conference held at the Korea House in Milan, Italy, on the 14th (Korean time) about what happened during the competition, episodes after winning the medal, and the honest emotions she felt.
In the women's ski snowboard halfpipe final of the Milan-Cortina d'Ampezzo Winter Olympics held in the early morning of the 13th at Livigno Snowpark in Italy, Choi scored 90.25 points to surpass Chloe Kim of the United States, who scored 88.00 points, and claimed the top spot.
After falling consecutively in her first and second runs and facing a desperate situation, she pulled off a miraculous comeback in her final third run and hung the gold medal around her neck.
She became the first-ever Winter Olympic gold medalist in Korean skiing history and also broke the record for the youngest Olympic gold medalist in this event, which Chloe Kim had set at the 2018 Pyeongchang Games.
Born in 2008, Choi Gaon said, "When I return to Korea, I plan to have a pajama party with my friends."
To younger athletes, she offered a mature piece of advice: "In snowboarding, it is important to enjoy yourself while you ride."
Regarding her injury, she recalled, "If I had been taken away on a stretcher, I would have had to withdraw from the competition right then, so I asked for a little more time, tried to move my foot by tensing my toes first, and fortunately I was able to compete again."
When asked about her future goals, she said, "I did not show you my best performance at this Olympics," and added, "Rather than setting goals far in the future, I will focus on working to become a better athlete than I am right now."
Born as the third daughter among two sons and two daughters to her father, Choi Inyoung, and her mother, Park Minhye, Choi Gaon has been snowboarding with her family since childhood, and in 2017, when she was nine years old, the entire family appeared together on a TV program as a 'snowboard family' and drew public attention.
After that, she began competing as a professional snowboarder and, starting from the 2023-2024 season, emerged as Korea's leading snowboard athlete.
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