Last-chance saloon on home snow for Swiss stars fighting for Olympic spots

This weekend Veysonnaz will play host to many internal battles as ski cross' best athletes do battle in what is the final stop of the World Cup tour before teams for the upcoming Olympic Games are confirmed.

With quota spots for each nation now confirmed, as you can see here, it is now up to each NOC to pick the athletes that will represent their respective countries at next month's Milano Cortina 2026 Olympic Winter Games.

Switzerland is one of three nations, along with Germany and France, to have a maximum of four women and four men skiing for them on the Italian slopes in ski cross. And with a deadline of Monday for the names to be revealed, pressure is ramped up when the athletes head to Veysonnaz for the next stop of the Ski Cross World Cup tour, the first races since the final stop of 2025 in Innichen last month.

There is plenty of jostling in the Swiss team, where internal rules have confirmed Ryan Regez and Fanny Smith as good as going to Milan, while the other six spots are still up for grabs.

'I’ve dreamed of the Olympics since I was a child'

Alex Fiva has already represented Switzerland at the Olympic Games; at Sochi 2014, Pyeongchang 2018 and at Beijing 2022 where he won silver after finishing behind gold-medallist Regez.

The 39-year-old is one of six men trying to grab one of the three places available, along with Tobias Baur, Gil Martin, Sandro Lohner, Jonas Lenherr and Romain Detraz.

"It's always special to represent Switzerland at any Games," Fiva said of the prospect of going to a fourth edition.

Fiva did not have a good weekend the last time a World Cup took place on home snow in Arosa in the middle of December, but since then he's been rapid on his skis. After qualifying in the top three across both days in Innichen, Fiva made the Big Final on both days.

He finished second behind Reece Howden on day one, with Baur coming third to make it a Swiss double on the podium.

Baur has skied well in qualifications this season, but in the races has not fared as strongly, with the Innichen podium the only time he has made it to the semi-finals so far this season.

However, the 28 year-old remains optimistic: "I feel very good. I had good training sessions at home in fitness and in ski cross training in France. My nerves are good, and I’m looking forward to the races here."

If Baur makes it in, it would be a first Games for him.

⁠"Representing Switzerland at the Olympic Games would be an absolute career highlight for me," he said. "I’ve dreamed of the Olympics since I was a child, and I hope that dream comes true."

It might also be a first Games for Martin or Lohner. Martin has qualified in the top ten on three of the stops so far this season but is yet to make it into the quarter-finals.

However, working in his favour is that the last time he made it into a semi-finals was this time last year at Veysonnaz. Martin says the prospect of taking on those closest to him for a place at the Games does not bring with it extra pressure.

"We compete against each other in every race, so for me it's not an additional battle," he said. "We all want to win, and that means you have to beat your friends too."

Lohner is another who likes Veysonnaz, having won the National Championships there in February after beating the likes of Regez and Detraz in the Big Final.

"I know what I can do and wanna prove it to myself and that doesn't change if it is a home race or not," Lohner said. "It is nice to have your friends and family watching and that just makes it more special when I do well."

Detraz has been to the Games before, representing his country at Beijing 2022 where he was unable to make it past the first heat, and he echoed Martin's words about competing against friends with so much on the line this weekend: "It has always been a tight game in the Swiss team for these events, so we are used to it."

Meanwhile Lenherr, who competed at Pyeongchang 2018, has arguably the most to do in order to qualify, as he has only raced twice in this season's World Cup - the first two races in Val Thorens where he did not qualify for the first race and came 19th in the second.

Lenherr missed the whole of last season due to a foot injury, and has struggled this term with an abdominal strain, but he's in Veysonnaz and ready to stake a claim for an Olympic spot.

'Biggest and greatest sport event'

With Smith getting the green light barring any major issues over the next few days, there are four other women fighting for the three remaining places: Saskja Lack, Talina Gantenbein, Sixtine Cousin and Isabelle Zippert.

Gantenbein competed at the last two Games, while Lack joined her at the most recent Olympics in Beijing. Smith is yet to miss participating at an Olympic Games, having been a part of the Switzerland team at ski cross' Olympic debut at Vancouver 2010.

Gantenbein revealed she has been struggling with sickness in December, despite having made it to the Small Final in each of the last three races, saying that "it can only get better when I’m back to 100% fitness".

The 28-year-old is desperate to claim her first podium on home snow since Arosa in 2020 as she looks to add to her collection of Olympic Games experiences.

"It‘s the biggest and greatest sporting event and it’s a proud moment for an athlete to represent their own country there," she said.

Lack won the National Championships in Veysonnaz two years ago, and has come out the blocks with a bang this season, coming second and third in qualifying in the opening weekend in Val Thorens.

Though Arosa was not a good stop for her, she made the Small Final in both outings of the most recent stop in Innichen, and is showing the kind of form that could see her attend back-to-back Games.

But waiting in the wings to stop her are Sixtine Cousin and Isabelle Zippert.

Cousin has struggled somewhat this season so far, having finishes of 15th and 11th at Val Thorens and then 12th and 16th in Innichen. However, she did well in Arosa, where she qualified sixth fastest and then came second in the Small Final. Could home snow be of a benefit to the 26-year-old, or does it add to her nerves?

"I don’t feel the pressure because it is in Switzerland," Cousin said. "The only difference is that my family and friends are here and I want to do well in front of them.

"I feel good physically. I enjoyed the time at home with my family and I am happy to be back skiing. After a break I always feel excited to have races again."

Then there's Zippert, who this season already has qualified sixth and seventh across two days in Innichen and won the Small Final on day one - the first time she had made it to the semi-finals in a World Cup race since making her debut in Veysonnaz in 2023.

The 25-year-old is ready to upset the apple cart with a pair of big performances in Veysonnaz and add her name to the selection headache already being experienced by the coaches.

"I’ve had some physical challenges after the last races but I’m managing them well and am ready to race," Zippert said. "Of course there are some nerves, but they’re the good kind, I’m really excited to compete.

"Racing in Switzerland is really special. There’s maybe a bit more pressure, but mostly it’s extra motivation because I want to perform well in front of the home crowd."

'Enjoy the process'

The coaches have their jobs to do when it comes to selection confirmation on Monday, and so do the athletes, who know they can only perform at full tilt and hope for the best.

"The four best and fastest will get a spot at the Olympics and if I'm one of them I'm super happy but if I'm not the others were just faster and deserve it more than I do," said Lohner.

Cousin added: "At the end the most important thing is to enjoy the process and I can only control what I do and not what the others do so I am at peace with this situation."

While the athletes are playing down the importance of these next two races with their words, their actions may say differently. At the time of writing, with the first day's qualification complete, there are five Swiss men in the top eight. And why not, with the big prize of a ticket to Milan on the line over the next few days.

"A year ago I wasn't even thinking about having the chance to go there and now I'm in this position and the next two races will decide who can go there," continued Lohner.

"It is a childhood dream to race at the Olympics. And also, with the races in Livigno it is the closest Olympics to my hometown probably since the Olympics in St. Moritz.

"So that makes it even more special to have it close to home."

The Veysonnaz World Cup races take place on Friday 23 and Saturday 24 January.