Andy Devaney
If you were hoping for a quiet winter, the Team GB Snowboard team and their ski-side partners have other plans. The British Olympic Association has named 20 athletes for the Milano Cortina 2026 Olympic Winter Games, and the selection reads like a proper British snow-day: part swagger, part grit, and entirely uninterested in staying indoors.
This is not a squad built for polite participation. It’s built for landings you feel in your fillings, slalom gates taken at the sort of speed that makes your life flash before your goggles, and long-distance cross-country suffering that should probably come with a wellness warning.
Park & pipe: eight athletes, zero fear, and plenty of flair
Start with the park & pipe unit, eight-strong and bristling with promise. Returning Olympians Zoe Atkin, Gus Kenworthy and Kirsty Muir bring the know-how—how to handle the stage, the spotlight, and the small matter of performing tricks that defy both gravity and common sense.
They’re joined by Team GB debutants Mia Brookes, Liam Richards, Chris McCormick, Maisie Hill, and Txema Mazet-Brown—names that will soon be very familiar to anyone who likes their winter sport served with a side of jaw-drop.
Atkin, heading to her second Olympics, put it simply and powerfully: “Being named to Team GB for Milan Cortina 2026 is a proud and motivating moment for me. It reflects the hard work and commitment that goes into every day of training, and it gives me even more drive as I prepare to compete on the Olympic stage. I’m excited to represent Great Britain in my second Olympics and aim to deliver my best performance in Milan.”
That’s the thing about elite snow athletes: they can make “daily training” sound like a wholesome hobby, when in reality it’s more like a full-time relationship with ice, impact, and the occasional argument with physics.
Alpine slalom: Ryding’s fifth Games, and one last charge
On the alpine side, Team GB will field a three-man delegation in men’s slalom: Laurie Taylor (Pyeongchang 2018), Billy Major (Beijing 2022), and the headline act—Dave Ryding, preparing for his fifth Olympic Winter Games and already confirming this will be his final season on the international circuit.
Five Olympics is not a career; it’s a saga. And Ryding sounds like a man determined to end his story with the kind of final chapter you re-read.
Dave Ryding said: “ It’s a real honour to be selected to represent Team GB again. I am looking forward to performing on the biggest stage in front of a central European crowd for the first time in my Olympic career and I can’t wait to get out there and into the action. I’ve never taken for granted what it means to represent my country and to have the chance to compete for Great Britain at an Olympic Games for the fifth time is something I could only have dreamed of when I went to my first Games back in 2010.
“As everyone knows, this is my last season of ski racing, and I’m going to give everything I’ve got to make my final Olympics my best one. I’m really grateful to everyone who’s worked to help me get here, and I’m looking forward to being part of an incredible Team GB delegation in Milano Cortina 2026.”
There’s a particular romance to a final season—especially in a sport that offers no bargains. Slalom is precise chaos: one blink, one fraction late, and your day becomes an instant replay for everyone else.
Cross-country: Musgrave leads experience, Pryce makes history
The cross-country team comes with serious mileage. Andrew Musgrave, a four-time Olympian, is selected alongside Beijing 2022 veteran James Clugnet, plus Olympic debutants Joe Davies and Anna Pryce.
Pryce’s selection carries a notable marker: she’s set to become Team GB’s first female Olympic cross-country skier since 2018—a small line in a press release, but a meaningful step in a sport where progress is earned the hard way.
Snowboard cross and ski cross: Bankes and Nightingale bring silver pedigree
Then there’s snowboard cross, the winter equivalent of a bar-room sprint—except you’re on a board, at speed, and the furniture is made of ice.
Charlotte Bankes and Huw Nightingale are selected for their fourth and second Olympics respectively, arriving as 2025 Team Snowboard Cross World Championship silver medalists, with strong individual form behind them.
And in ski cross, Ollie Davies returns for a second Olympic appearance after making his debut in Beijing 2022—another athlete who knows exactly how quickly this event can go from “glory” to “where did my skis go?”
Moguls: Gerken Schofield returns, joined by Jeannesson
In moguls, Makayla Gerken Schofield is back for her second Games after recording Britain’s best-ever Olympic moguls result at Beijing 2022. She’ll be joined by Team GB debutant Mateo Jeannesson, adding fresh energy to a discipline that looks like controlled mayhem performed by people who enjoy being bounced around like pinballs.
The leadership view: “talent, grit, and will-to-win”
Beyond the athletes, the confidence from within the camp is loud and clear. Vicky Gosling, Snowsport Team Leader and GB Snowsport Chief Executive, sees a group ready to scrap with the best.
Vicky Gosling, Snowsport Team Leader and GB Snowsport Chief Executive, said: “Over the past four years, our skiers and snowboarders have shown they’re capable of mixing it with the very best in the world, and the squad that’s heading out for these Games is a real reflection of the talent, grit, and will-to-win that makes British sport so special.
“I couldn’t be more excited for what’s in store at these Games, and I’m looking forward to working closely with Eve and the entire team to give these incredible athletes every change of fulfilling their potential in Italy next month.”
That line—“mixing it with the very best”—is the tell. It’s not about showing up. It’s about barging into the conversation and refusing to whisper.
Chef de Mission: a squad spanning debutants to five-time Olympians
Eve Muirhead, Team GB Chef de Mission, highlighted the range of experience across the 20 selected athletes—an important ingredient at an Olympics where nerves are as real as the snow.
Eve Muirhead, Team GB Chef de Mission, said: “I’m delighted to welcome all twenty snowsport athletes to Team GB for Milano Cortina 2026, from Olympic debutants to five-time Olympians. Having had the honour of seeing many of the team in action throughout their journey to qualification, I know we’re set for some remarkable performances out in Italy.
“I wish them every success and encourage the nation to get behind our athletes as they prepare to take to the slopes in just a few weeks’ time.’’
What this means heading into Milano Cortina 2026
The balance of this selection is what stands out: established names with Olympic scar tissue, rising talents hungry for their first taste, and genuine medal credentials in events where milliseconds and margins rule everything.
The Team GB Snowboard team headline may grab the eye, but it’s the breadth of the wider snowsport contingent that should excite fans—park & pipe flair, slalom craft, cross-country endurance, and the full-contact chaos of snowboard cross and ski cross.
Italy will provide the postcard backdrop. Team GB looks intent on providing the storyline.
FAQs
Who has been selected for Team GB snowsport at Milano Cortina 2026?
The BOA has named 20 ski and snowboard athletes across park & pipe, alpine slalom, cross-country, snowboard cross, ski cross and moguls.
Who are the key names in the TeamGB Snowboard team for 2026?
The park & pipe selection includes returning Olympians Zoe Atkin, Gus Kenworthy and Kirsty Muir, plus debutants Mia Brookes, Liam Richards, Chris McCormick, Maisie Hill and Txema Mazet-Brown.
Is Dave Ryding going to Milano Cortina 2026?
Yes. Dave Ryding has been selected for men’s slalom, which will be his fifth Olympic Winter Games and his final season racing internationally.
Who are Team GB’s snowboard cross selections?
Charlotte Bankes and Huw Nightingale are selected, entering as 2025 Team Snowboard Cross World Championship silver medalists.
