The second full Monday of the 2026 Winter Olympics never quite followed the French script. A new alpine event slipped out of reach, a ski jumper flirted with an historic podium, and a returning superstar in figure skating helped reset the mood on the ice.
French frustration in the new team alpine combined
Fresh from two medals the previous day in cross-country skiing and biathlon, the French delegation arrived on Monday with a real sense of momentum. A key target was the mixed team alpine combined, staged on the demanding Stelvio course in Bormio and billed as one of the showcase additions to the 2026 programme.
The format brought together speed and technical specialists in one combined ranking, with a downhill run followed by slalom legs deciding the medals. For France, it was the sort of hybrid test that usually plays to their depth on the World Cup circuit.
The French squad came to Bormio eyeing the podium; they left with the feeling they had let a rare opportunity slip away.
Small mistakes in the downhill cost valuable tenths, and the team never fully recovered in the afternoon slalom. On a track that punished any lack of precision, France slipped out of medal contention as rivals from traditional alpine powerhouses pieced together cleaner runs.
Coaches had spoken beforehand of “a strong chance” to add to the early medal tally, especially given the course knowledge some skiers had built up on the Stelvio in previous seasons. Instead, the French camp was left dissecting split times and missed gates, conscious that this new Olympic event may not offer such an open podium again any time soon.
Why the team alpine combined matters
The team alpine combined is one of the clearest attempts by the International Olympic Committee to modernise skiing for TV and younger fans. It condenses the drama of two disciplines into a single day while weaving in a national story line.
- Morning: high-speed downhill runs set an initial ranking.
- Afternoon: technical slalom legs reshuffle the order.
- Final result: aggregate times or points determine the team medals.
For fans, that means constant jeopardy: a team off the pace in the morning can storm back later, or a favourite can eject from the medal race with a single mistake. For athletes, it adds workload and tactical headaches: who starts which leg, how hard to attack, how much risk is acceptable.
Valentin Foubert’s near miss in ski jumping
If the alpine disappointment stung, ski jumping offered a more bittersweet storyline. France’s Valentin Foubert came closer than many expected to a historic podium in the individual competition.
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On the hill where distances nudged past 100 metres, Foubert put together two jumps of 102.5 metres, ending with a total of 263.3 points. That placed him fifth overall, just behind a crowded podium decided by fine margins of style and wind compensation.
Foubert finished fifth with 263.3 points, less than a handful of metres and style marks away from a first French Olympic medal in ski jumping.
The gold medal went to Germany’s Philipp Raimund with 274.1 points. Poland’s 18-year-old Kacper Tomasiak surged into silver on the strength of a 107‑metre leap in the second round, taking his total to 270.7 points. Bronze was even tighter, shared on 266 points by Japan’s Ren Nikaido and Switzerland’s Gregor Deschwanden.
For a nation without deep tradition on the big hills, Foubert’s performance will be catalogued as both a chance missed and a breakthrough. His consistency at over 100 metres, in a high-pressure Olympic final, signals real potential for the rest of the fortnight and future Games.
How ski jumping scoring actually works
Foubert’s fifth place can look abstract without context. A ski jumping score combines several elements:
| Component | What it measures |
|---|---|
| Distance points | How far the jumper flies relative to the hill’s K-point. |
| Style points | Five judges rate body position, landing and steadiness. |
| Wind compensation | Adjusts scores for headwind or tailwind advantage. |
| Gate factor | Corrects for changes in the start bar height. |
A two-jump total like Raimund’s 274.1 or Foubert’s 263.3 is the sum of all those factors. A small wobble in landing or a slight tailwind can mean the difference between fifth and bronze.
Cizeron and Fournier Beaudry light up the ice
The evening in Milan belonged to figure skating. On the rink, France’s star duo Guillaume Cizeron and Laurence Fournier Beaudry launched their Olympic campaign in the rhythm dance with the kind of precision that quiets a nervous arena.
They delivered 90.18 points, their best score of the season in the rhythm dance and a clear step up from the 89.98 achieved earlier in the team event. The mark briefly put them comfortably in first place after 11 couples, ahead of Georgia’s Diana Davis and Gleb Smolkin (77.15) and the Czech duo Natalie Taschlerova and Filip Taschler (75.33), before the heavyweight contenders later in the night took their turn.
The French-Canadian partnership raised their season’s best in the rhythm dance to 90.18 points, sending a loud signal before Wednesday’s free dance.
For fans tracking the rivalry at the top, the comparison was telling. American pair Madison Chock and Evan Bates, among the favourites for gold, had set a season high of 91.06 in the team event rhythm dance. Cizeron and Fournier Beaudry now sit right on their heels.
“A goldsmith’s work” on the Milan ice
Both skaters described the programme as one that leaves no room for hesitation. It is built on intricate edges, tightly timed step sequences and close holds that highlight their chemistry. Each element carries the risk of a deduction if mistimed, which explains why Cizeron called it “a goldsmith’s work” in other comments to broadcasters.
The scoreboard reflected that complexity. Their 90.18 points came from two components:
- Technical score: 51.94 points for executed elements such as twizzles, lifts and step sequences.
- Program components: 38.24 points assessing skating skills, transitions, performance, composition and interpretation.
Those totals are not just numbers for Wednesday’s free dance. The final Olympic ranking in ice dance is based on the combined scores of the rhythm dance and free dance, so every additional tenth already banked on Monday could prove decisive in a tight medal fight.
What Monday means for the rest of France’s Games
While the day ended without a French medal, the broader picture remains upbeat. Doubts linger over the team alpine combined, but two positives stand out: Foubert has shown he can challenge the established nations in ski jumping, and Cizeron–Fournier Beaudry look ready for a head-to-head with the US favourites.
The schedule now tilts back towards French strongholds. On Tuesday, biathlon returns with the men’s 20km individual, featuring Eric Perrot, Quentin Fillon Maillet, Fabien Claude and Emilien Jacquelin. Fans are already calculating chances of multiple medals in one race, a scenario that statistics say is rare but far from impossible when a team is collectively in form.
The programme also brings Perrine Laffont into play on the moguls course, alongside more alpine, freestyle, curling, cross-country and short-track speed skating. For those trying to watch at work, the biathlon individual starts at 1:30pm local time and typically runs just over an hour – a tough squeeze for anyone stuck in a mid-afternoon video call.
Understanding the stakes: medals, momentum and mental load
Olympic campaigns are often shaped less by single results and more by the psychological swing they create inside a team. A near miss like Foubert’s fifth place can generate confidence as much as regret, particularly in a discipline where French jumpers are still building a competitive culture.
In figure skating, the mental side is even sharper. Rhythm dance performances like Monday’s set a tone, reminding the couple they can hit season-best numbers under pressure. That memory becomes a tool when the free dance arrives two days later with medals at stake.
On 9 February the French team did not add to its medal count, but it strengthened the sense that more hardware is within reach.
Key terms fans will hear all week
For viewers catching only highlights, some technical language can feel opaque. A few recurring expressions from Monday’s events help make sense of the coverage:
- Rhythm dance: The shorter, more structured ice dance segment with a required musical style and set elements.
- Free dance: The longer, more expressive programme that allows greater choreographic freedom; medals are decided on the combined score of both segments.
- Style points (ski jumping): Judge-based marks that reward stable flight, balanced body position and clean telemark landings.
- Individual (biathlon): A race format where each missed shot adds a fixed time penalty rather than a penalty loop, making accuracy even more valuable.
- Mixed team events: Competitions where men and women contribute to a single national result, used increasingly across winter sports.
As Milan-Cortina moves into its crucial middle phase, days like 9 February often look less glamorous on the medal table but prove highly influential. They expose weaknesses, confirm strengths and, in the case of Cizeron and Fournier Beaudry, show that some of France’s biggest hopes are skating in exactly the right direction.