Six Team Canada snowboarders to compete in slopestyle & big air at Milano Cortina 2026

January 16, 2026

Team Canada has been among the leading countries since slopestyle and big air were added to the Olympic snowboard program. The six athletes named to the Milano Cortina 2026 Olympic team are hoping to keep the streak of success going.

Cameron Spalding will be making his Olympic debut as the reigning Crystal Globe winner in men’s snowboard slopestyle. He earned that on the strength of two FIS World Cup victories in 2024-25, which brought him to four career World Cup podiums, all in slopestyle. The now-20-year-old was the world junior slopestyle champion in 2022.

He has long looked up to Mark McMorris and will soon get to experience the Olympic Winter Games with his idol as a teammate.

Canada’s Cameron Spalding celebrates winning the leaders bib following the men’s World Cup slopestyle snowboard event in Calgary, Alta., Saturday, Feb. 22, 2025.THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jeff McIntosh

Team Canada Roster: See all the athletes nominated for Milano Cortina 2026

McMorris will be making his fourth Olympic appearance, meaning he will have competed in every men’s snowboard slopestyle event since it debuted at Sochi 2014. He has won three straight Olympic bronze medals, making him the only athlete to be on the slopestyle podium at all three Games in which it has been included.

Now 32 years old, McMorris is regarded as one of the all-time snowboarding greats. His 24 medals at the Winter X Games, which includes a silver medal won last year, is a record for an individual athlete.

Mark McMorris holds up his bronze medal on the podium at Beijing 2022 — Mark McMorris receives his bronze medal for the men’s snowboard slopestyle event during the Beijing 2022 Olympic Winter Games on Monday, February 07, 2022. Photo by Darren Calabrese/COC

“It’s incredibly special to be representing Canada at my fourth Olympic Winter Games. Every time I get the opportunity to wear the maple leaf on the Olympic stage, it means a lot, and I’m grateful to still be competing at a level where I can do that,” said McMorris. “Being one of the veterans on the team now is something I really embrace — sharing my experience, helping guide the younger riders, and trying to set the standard both on and off the hill. It feels like a full-circle moment, and I’m proud to be part of this team.”

The other returning Olympian on the team is Laurie Blouin, who will be making her third Olympic appearance. The silver medallist in women’s slopestyle at PyeongChang 2018 is coming off a World Cup victory just last weekend in Aspen. It was her first time standing atop a World Cup podium since March 2022, proving that the 29-year-old is still a force to be reckoned with. She is a six-time medallist at the Winter X Games and a two-time world champion, winning big air in 2021 and slopestyle in 2017.

Laurie Blouin competes in snowboard slopestyle at the Beijing 2022 Olympic Winter Games (Canada Snowboard/Chris Witwicki)

She’ll be joined in the women’s events by Juliette Pelchat, who competed at the 2020 Winter Youth Olympic Games. The 21-year-old placed a career-best fourth in big air at the FIS World Cup this past December in Steamboat. Her father, JF Pelchat, is a former professional snowboarder who has provided great guidance and support.

Eli Bouchard will be making his Olympic debut at just 18 years old, two years after he was a double medallist at the Gangwon 2024 Winter Youth Olympic Games, winning big air gold and slopestyle silver. He earned his first World Cup podium and victory in February 2025, winning a big air event in Aspen, after landing a “triple moose flip”, a trick he invented and named and is the only person to have attempted. Bouchard became a YouTube sensation at eight years old when he became the youngest known snowboarder to land a double back flip.

Canadian Eli Bouchard holds his hand over his heart while wearing a gold medal — Gold medallist Eli Bouchard celebrates on the podium during the Medal Ceremony for the Snowboard Men’s Big Air at the Welli Hilli Park Ski Resort. The Winter Youth Olympic Games, Gangwon, South Korea, Sunday 28 January 2024. Photo: OIS/Thomas Lovelock.

Also competing in his first Olympic Games is 27-year-old Francis Jobin. He also earned his first World Cup podium and victory in February 2025, winning the slopestyle event in Aspen.

Sadly unable to compete at Milano Cortina 2026 is reigning slopestyle world champion Liam Brearley, who had pre-qualified for the Olympic team based on his results during the 2024-25 season. In November, he injured his left knee and ankle, which resulted in him undergoing surgery.

Canada has won 17 snowboard medals since the sport joined the Olympic program at Nagano 1998. Eight of those medals have come in slopestyle and big air.

The snowboard big air competition at Milano Cortina 2026 will get started on February 5, prior to the Opening Ceremony, and continue to February 9. The slopestyle events will follow February 16-18. All snowboard events will be contested at the Livigno Snow Park.

Team Canada Slopestyle/Big Air Snowboarders at Milano Cortina 2026:

Laurie Blouin (Quebec City, Que.)
Eli Bouchard (Lac Beauport, Que.)
Francis Jobin (Quebec City, Que.)
Mark McMorris (Regina, Sask.)
Juliette Pelchat (Whistler, B.C.)
Cameron Spalding (Havelock, Ont.)