Winter Olympics 2026: Zoe Atkin wins halfpipe bronze to secure fifth medal for Team GB

In 2018, when Zoe Atkin was 15, she watched her older sister Izzy win a Winter Olympic bronze medal for Team Great Britain – and a spark was lit.

She wanted her moment on the podium. She wanted to do the same.

That fire burned for eight years until Sunday, when it did.

By winning halfpipe bronze in Livigno, Atkin became the second British athlete to win an Olympic medal in skiing.

To keep the honor in the family, the first was her sister in the PyeongChang downhill race.

“She was always my biggest inspiration,” said Atkin, 23. “She pushed me into this sport, and she was always bullying me to jump off things on the mountain.”

“After watching it [win the medal] It’s always been a big goal of mine.

“It’s a real moment because she was here supporting me, and I was there when she won her bronze medal, so it was really special.

“Obviously I wanted to one-up her a little bit, but it’s really special to get the bronze medal.

“My mum claims to be the first mother to have two Olympic medals for Great Britain in the family.”

Atkin had already secured a medal when she fell into the tube in her final round, and after relieving the pressure, she improved her score to 92.50 – just half a point off the silver medal position.

Chinese international star Elaine Gu won the gold medal, her first in these games after two silver medals, with a score of 94.75, while her compatriot Li Fanghui won the silver medal.

Atkin’s medal was Great Britain’s fifth at the Milan-Cortina Games, following three golds and a silver, equaling the team’s best record in 2014 and 2018.

But this was the team’s most successful Winter Olympics as Charlotte Banks and Hugh Nightingale claimed a second gold medal in the mixed team figure skating event exactly a week earlier.

Never before has Great Britain won more than one gold medal at a single Winter Games.