Ski Mountaineering prepares to make its debut
Published Thu 19 Feb 2026
Courtesy Australian Olympic Committee
Ski mountaineering (‘SkiMo’) makes its first appearance at the Milano Cortina 2026 Games, showcasing athletes who climb steep alpine terrain before racing downhill at speed.
The sport combines endurance, technical skill, and tactical decision‑making. It features rapid ascents, swift transitions, technical obstacles and alpine racing descents. Its inclusion highlights the growing appeal of high‑performance mountain sports and brings a fresh, dynamic challenge to the Winter Olympic program.
There are three events on the SkiMo program, Men’s and Women’s Sprint and the Mixed Relay event. Athletes ascend the course with skins attached to their skis, which are like sticky carpets that give them traction to climb, stopping them from sliding back. They then transition their ski to their backs and boot pack or hike further up the hill before re-strapping their skis to their boots and stripping the skins off then they race downhill through a course of alpine style gates.
Australia’s first athletes to compete in the sport of Ski Mountaineering will be four-time Olympian Phil Bellingham and Olympic debutant Lara Hamilton.
Ski Mountaineering being a relatively young sport, Lara Hamilton spoke about how she learned about the sport and how she got involved.
“I started off Nordic skiing from a young age, and found running shortly after that, and also got into back country skiing when I moved to the US for college,” Hamilton said
“Then I saw a bunch of people moving quicker than me up the mountain, and I thought, what’s that sport? I've got to try it. So, I got a lighter set up, and some friends taught me how to SkiMo, and that was that.”
She also discussed what it takes to be a successful athlete in the sport.
“You've got to have a routine, and you've got to practice that routine, so when race day comes, it's automatic, and you don't have to think too much. You need to trust that process, because that's all it is, it’s completing the process and trusting that and just going through it step by step, not overthinking,” she said.
Hamilton is excited to see the sport make its Games debut and sees it as a key opportunity for the sport to grow.
“[The Games] is important if the sport wants to grow and include more people. I think this is a great thing for it, and it's a way to introduce it to the world on a large scale and provide more opportunities for the youth in the sport as well.”
Phil Bellingham has competed in Cross-Country Skiing at his three previous Olympic Games, and discovered SkiMo while still competing in Cross-Country.
He said the cross-country skills could give him an advantage in SkiMo.
“I think my best strength is definitely my start. I'm fairly fast off the line, and also just when it's a little bit flatter, I can stride out and use my cross-country skiing skills a bit more to my advantage as well,” he said.
He also spoke about what it means to be a four-time Olympian and why it is important to see SkiMo at these Games.
“I guess I'm just really happy with being able to be here and happy with what I've achieved over my career. I’m also obviously super proud to compete for Australia again,” the 34-year-old said.
“I think the sport's got a lot of potential, and hopefully having it here at the Olympic Games, getting a lot more media exposure will be good for it, and hopefully it starts to grow, especially in Australia.”
See Australia’s Ski Mountaineering team in action at the Stelvio Ski Centre starting 9.50am CET Thursday 19 February 2026. Watch the Winter Olympics on Channel 9, 9Now and Stan Sport.
