Anna-Lena Forster Wins Unexpected Gold in Women’s Giant Slalom at Milano Cortina 2026 Paralympics
MILAN CORTINA, Italy – Anna-Lena Forster of Germany continued her dominant run at the Milano Cortina 2026 Paralympic Winter Games, securing her second gold medal of the competition in the women’s giant slalom sitting event on . The victory comes after her earlier gold in the downhill and a silver in the alpine combined, further solidifying her status as a force in Para alpine skiing.
Forster, 30, completed the race at the Tofane Alpine Skiing Centre, adding to a career total of six golds from four Paralympic Games. She expressed immense satisfaction with her performance, stating, “I am so satisfied. I could do what I had intended to do. I am so happy and even proud.”
The German skier revealed that a recent adjustment to her equipment played a crucial role in her success. “I have one more race so I can’t give everything to celebrating,” she added, looking ahead to the slalom on .
Unexpected Gold for Forster
Forster’s triumph in the giant slalom was particularly noteworthy as it’s a discipline she has historically found challenging. She acknowledged the difficulty, saying, “This is totally incredible. I’ve really had a lot of difficulties with the giant slalom during the last two years. The fact that I made it onto this podium today is crazy. It’s been a hard road. I guess I’ve finally figured out how this giant slalom thing works.”
The victory was aided by the misfortune of one of her main rivals, Audrey Pascual Seco of Spain, who fell during the first run. Forster admitted seeing the incident on television in the start house and noted the unpredictable nature of the course, stating, “You don’t really know how the piste reacts. It looked a bit out of control with Audrey.”
Pascual Seco, who had previously won gold in super-G and super combined, too secured a silver medal in the downhill, demonstrating her overall strength in the competition.
Forster finished ahead of Japan’s Momoka Muraoka and China’s Sitong Liu, completing the podium.
Muraoka, nicknamed the “Queen of Winter,” has been battling physical issues since fracturing her clavicle in November. She acknowledged her performance fell short of expectations, stating, “Unfortunately, today I didn’t perform at the level of that name.”
Aarsjoe Continues Golden Streak
In the women’s standing category, Sweden’s Ebba Aarsjoe continued her impressive performance, securing her third gold medal in Italy. She also claimed a bronze in super-G, demonstrating her versatility. “I am very, very happy, but very tired. It was a tough race, especially the second run,” Aarsjoe said.
Russia’s Varvara Voronchikhina took silver and France’s Aurelie Richard rounded out the podium with a bronze medal.
Aigner’s Continued Dominance
Austria’s Veronika Aigner added to her medal haul with a third gold in the visually impaired category, along with a silver already secured. She narrowly defeated Italy’s Chiara Mazzel, with compatriot Elina Stary joining them on the podium.
Aigner and her brother, Johannes, who competes in the men’s visually impaired category, are on track to potentially reach their goal of 10 medals at the Games. The Aigner siblings—Veronika, Barbara, Elisabeth, and Johannes—won a total of nine medals, including four golds, at Beijing 2022. Johannes has already secured two golds and a bronze at Milano Cortina 2026.
The Aigner siblings have been celebrating their successes in the Paralympic Village with music. “Johannes brought a harmonica and a guitar… I play a little guitar,” Aigner said modestly, revealing her musical talents. She added that their favorite song to play is “Stand By Me” because it’s easy.
The Para alpine skiing action continues on with the men’s giant slalom.