St-Germain, Nullmeyer ski to top-16 finishes in women’s slalom

Two Canadians finished in the top-16 of the women’s slalom at the Milano Cortina 2026 Olympic Winter Games.

Laurence St-Germain led the way, finishing 12th overall while Ali Nullmeyer placed 16th.

St-Germain, from Saint-Ferréol-les-Neiges, Que., sat 18th after the event’s first run but improved her time by over three seconds in the second and final run, giving her a total time of 1:41.82.

“After the first run I was a bit disappointed, because I had a really good start,” said St-Germain, who was sixth-fastest in the second run. “I looked at my intervals, they were good. I made a big mistake and when I got to the end of my run, I was surprised to have finished it, but I wasn’t even sure I had done all the gates. I’m glad I had a second chance though, and I had nothing to lose, so I gave it my all.”

St-Germain finished 2.72 seconds back of American Mikaela Shiffrin, who won gold. Camille Rast of Switzerland won silver while Anna Swenn-Larsson of Sweden took the bronze.

Milano Cortina 2026 is the third Olympic Games for St-Germain, who was the 2023 World champion in the slalom. This improves on her slalom results from her two previous Olympic experiences, when she placed 15th at PyeongChang 2018 and 17th at Beijing 2022.

“I was more nervous on my first run, because if we’re being realistic, these are probably my last Olympics, my last chance at this. At the start I was really proud of being there for my third Olympics and I gave everything I had. Even though I end up with similar results each time, I enjoyed all my Olympic experiences and I’m very proud of myself.”

This was the second event of these Games for St-Germain. She competed with Valérie Grenier in the women’s team combined event where the two finished 13th.

Nullmeyer, meanwhile, finished less than a second back of St-Germain with a time of 1:42.17. In her second run, she shaved a little more than three seconds off her first.

“I definitely tried to go harder second run,” said Nullmeyer, who had limited training time before the Olympic Games due to injuries. “I haven’t really had the time this year to flip that switch into race mode and really get into it, so I think that was missing a little. But again, I am really proud of what I’ve been able to do in a short period of time.”

This is the second Olympic Games for Nullmeyer, who finished 21st in the slalom at Beijing 2022. Spectators were limited four years ago due to the pandemic and Nullmeyer said having her family in attendance this time around was a big difference.

“I’m super happy to have my family here. That made it a little less nerve-wracking, honestly, and I’m excited to see them tonight. I think it’s always just more experience under the belt. In the last Olympics I came in with a lot of really good results. This year I came in with not many results at all, so I think it just kind of shows me that every year is different and you just got to keep pushing through. I’m just super grateful for everyone who’s helped me get here.”

Like St-Germain, Nullmeyer competed in the women’s team combined earlier in these Games but was disqualified during her run. She was teamed up with Cassidy Gray.

Four Canadians competed in the women’s slalom, which featured 60 skiers. Along with St-Germain and Nullmeyer, Amelia Smart raced to a time of 1:44.49 to finish 27th while Kiki Alexander had a time of 1:47.49 to place her 35th.

This was the second Olympic Games for Smart, who also placed 27th in Beijing. Alexander, meanwhile, was competing in her first Olympic Games.

While disappointed with her result, Smart said she’s content knowing that she prepared as best she could. Like Nullmeyer, she said it was nice to have her family in attendance for these Olympic Games.

“Honestly, having my family here, that was pretty amazing to be able to see them after the first round, especially being disappointed. It’s always nice to get a hug from your parents and friends.”

Alexander explained that an equipment issue with her shin guard impacted her first run. On her second run, the 24-year-old soaked in the Olympic experience.

“It was super cool,” Alexander said of her first Olympic Games. “Just standing on the biggest stage in the world. My family’s out here supporting me, so I couldn’t have asked for a better day.”