Milano Cortina 2026: Para alpine skiing star Bauchet relearns winning habit

Arthur Bauchet admits there was a moment when he thought his Paralympic Winter Games would be a disappointment.

Given his outrageously successful Para alpine skiing career so far, he was justified in targeting five gold medals at Milano Cortina 2026. But by late morning on Tuesday 10 March, things were looking wobbly.

Bauchet had only notched silver in the men's downhill standing race, had crashed out of the super-G, injuring his thumb, and had just put down a mediocre super-G run in the first part of the combined. (Bauchet used a ruder word to describe it.)

In the second run of the combined at lunchtime, the Frenchman had nothing to lose. He pushed “like a donkey”, punishing his hand. (He had snapped a thumb ligament, and his hand was in plaster.) Though he said the adrenaline masked the pain.

Still, it seemed not to be enough. Aleksei Bugaev had only to cross the finish line to clinch gold. But the Russian crashed on the very last stretch of the course.

"Today, I had luck, a lot of luck, because if Aleksei got to the finish line, he [would have] won the gold medal,” said Bauchet.

"Really it's been a rough day because after yesterday, I had some difficult times.

"This morning, the super-G was really difficult in my head, because I didn't put the intention I wanted to put in this race. 

"I knew in slalom, I can make the difference because it's my discipline, and it's my favourite one, the one I'm the best at."

Swapping skis for wheels

Then in the giant slalom on Friday (13 March), ‘King Arthur’ rose again, slaying a Paralympic giant slalom curse. Though he had won four World Championship giant slaloms, Bauchet had never taken Paralympic gold in the discipline.

He described the bumpy snow on the course as being like a Paris-Roubaix, the infamously gruelling road cycling race with long stretches over cobble stones.

It’s a natural comparison for an athlete who also competes in elite Para cycling, though Bauchet is coy about leaning into his summer sport, which provides competition outside the ski season. 

"Maybe, but there are a lot of strong competitors in France,” he said when asked if he would consider competing at the LA28 Paralympic Games in 2028. “I'm in the category of Alexandre Leaute, the GOAT of Para cycling. I will try, and we will see. If I can do both Paralympics, it's just crazy."

Made to ski

Still, you wouldn’t discount Bauchet. 

His coach Thomas Frey described him as “a monster, mentally”. Bauchet is becoming the Hulk physically too – he has begun bodybuilding, which has helped with his rare genetic condition, which causes trembling in his legs.

His attacks can be triggered by intense emotion, and Bauchet experienced an episode in the media area after his second gold medal, joking that it was like going over cobbles. He often polks fun at his condition and repeats a line from one of his doctors: “Arthur is made for skiing not walking”.

He has been doing that since he was five, when he started out on the pistes of Serre-Chevalier with his skiing-loving parents, though he grew up around Saint-Tropez, before moving to the mountains of Briançon at 15. 

By 16, he had won a World Championship gold medal, the first of 12. Now 25, he has far exceeded 100 World Cup wins. He won his eighth straight Crystal Globe this season.

Aged 17, he took four silver medals at PyeongChang 2018. At Beijing 2022, he clinched three golds and a bronze.

Breaking the limit

It speaks volumes about the precariousness of alpine skiing that such a decorated athlete can still end up on his backside. 

"It's difficult to do this result in the Paralympic Games,” he said after his super-G crash. “I had a great season in World Cup, and I had big ambitions for today’s race. It's crazy how things can go wrong in a few hundredths of seconds, but it’s a game, it's sport.

“It's a game, so you have to push over the limit. Today, I pushed too much over the limit."

Many athletes claim not to feel pressure, but given Bauchet’s record, it seems plausible in his case.

"It’s not really pressure,” he said of competing at these Paralympics. “I'm really happy to be here and to race. When you’re the favourite, for me it's great because that means you have the technical level to beat the others. I'm really happy with that, and I feel no more pressure than in a World Cup."

At least if Bauchet has an off day, someone else can take a turn.

"I get along well with the French guys,” said Swiss skier Robin Cuche after the downhill at Cortina. “They have a good team, very funny guys.

"But I had enough of always being behind Arthur. 

"Five medals at the World Champs, always silver. To finally have gold, it's very nice."

Where to watch and listen to the Milano Cortina 2026 Paralympic Winter Games