Big Air Events Soar at 2026 Winter Olympics

Got story updates? Submit your updates here. ›

The 2026 Winter Olympics will feature big air events in both snowboarding and freestyle skiing, where athletes launch off a massive jump and perform a single trick per run. These events are relatively new to the Olympics, with snowboarding debuting in 2018 and freestyle skiing in 2022. Competitors are judged on difficulty, execution, amplitude, landing, and progression, with their two best scores out of three runs counting toward their final total.

Why it matters

Big air events have become some of the most thrilling and visually stunning competitions at the Winter Olympics, showcasing the incredible athleticism and creativity of the world's top snowboarders and freestyle skiers. As these events continue to evolve, the rules and judging criteria help shape the progression of these sports and determine which skills and techniques are rewarded.

The details

In big air snowboarding, riders drop down a long ramp and perform one trick per run after launching off a single oversized jump. Athletes compete in a best two out of three runs format, with the two highest scores counting toward their final total. These scores are based on difficulty, execution, amplitude, landing, and progression. More spins and flips usually mean higher difficulty, but riders must stay in control from takeoff through landing. Big air freestyle skiing follows a nearly identical format, with skiers also attempting one trick per run off a single jump and being scored on the same key factors.

• The 2026 Winter Olympics will take place.
• Big air snowboarding debuted at the 2018 Winter Olympics.
• Big air freestyle skiing debuted at the 2022 Winter Olympics.