'Identity issues' behind the army of pink beanies that cheered Aussie Josie Baff to gold medal glory
Josie Baff, the 23-year-old from Jindabyne, has won Australia's eighth Winter Olympic gold medal.
And watching on as she took our second gold medal of Milano Cortina 2026 was a whopping 35 family members, including parents, brother and sister, as well as her boyfriend, fellow Olympian Eliot Grondin.
Her whole supporter crew wore pink beanies, with Baff explaining after her win that she had worn a pink helmet since she was a small child.
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Watching on as Josie Baff took out our second gold medal of Milano Cortina 2026 was her family, including parents, brother and sister, as well as her boyfriend, fellow Olympian Eliot Grondin. Getty
"The pink helmet I've had since I was very little," Baff told Australian media, including Wide World of Sports.
"I wore a POC helmet throughout my whole skiing career and people were calling me 'Pinky' really early on, honestly I had a pink beanie I think it was an accident.
"I don't know if pink was even my favourite colour, I don't know if pink even is my favourite colour, but I definitely had some identity issues when I didn't have it, so I started paining it and yeah, it stuck around, so everyone was wearing pink beanies today and, yeah, it's super special. I also like that they can see me, they can spot me super easily, and they're always watching from home, so it's good I can say 'I'm in the pink helmet, that's me'.
Dad Peter Baff told Nine he was "stoked" for his daughter, labelling her win "incredible".
"I've never, ever felt anything even close to that," Peter said.
"She just did it, she did it all and it was amazing. I just love her."
Mum Petrina Baff was just as proud, especially to see her daughter follow in Cooper Woods' footsteps with gold after "all that training".
"My God, how excited was I yesterday for Cooper? I was beside myself crying and to think our own daughter is now an Olympic champion," Petrina said.
"She did so well. Did you see how well she just did? Oh, my God."
Watch the Winter Olympic Games Milano Cortina 2026 live and free on Channel 9 and 9Now. Plus, every event live & on demand, every medal in 4K, and exclusive international coverage on Stan Sport.
Mum Petrina Baff was just as proud, especially to see her daughter follow in Cooper Woods' footsteps with gold after "all that training". Nine
Josie's sister Georgia thought she "pulled it off beautifully" and was in awe of Josie's talents under pressure.
"And the finish, I kind of had a feeling about today and she just did it," Georgia said.
"She put it down, she's incredible. She works well off pressure, and she just thrived - she would have had so much fun and I can't wait to see her."
Brother Henry admitted he shed some tears watching Josie's win.
Josie's sister Georgia thought she "pulled it off beautifully" and was in awe of Josie's talents under pressure. Nine
"My sister - I grew up my whole life with her, racing with her," he said.
"She's the best in the world, she is number one, I couldn't be more proud."
Grondin, who won silver for Canada a day earlier in the men's snowboard cross, said Josie's event was "stressful to watch" but he was blown away by his girlfriend's gold medal performance.
"I can't describe how proud I am," he said.
Josie's brother Henry admitted he shed some tears watching Josie's win. Nine
"Seeing Jose over the last few years as an athlete, and today, to pull it off like this, the way she rode was mind blowing.
"I knew she had it, but for me, it was so stressful to watch until semi final, when she did it, I was like, OK, she's got it."
Baff took top spot in the women's snowboard cross final, ahead of Czech Republic's Eva Adamczykova and Italy's Michela Moioli, who won silver and bronze respectively.
Speaking on the coverage after the event, the Aussie said she was "in shock" with her win, revealing "it hasn't been easy" ahead of the event, because she "had the flu at the start of the week".
Grondin, who won silver for Canada a day earlier in the men's snowboard cross, said Josie's event was "stressful to watch" but he was blown away Nine
"I truly couldn't have done it without them," she said of her family, admitting there were "more sobs than words" after the event.
Baff said she was thrilled to have her family there cheering her on and to now celebrate the win with.
"They're very proud of me, and they can't believe it either," she said of her family's reaction.
"I think they all knew that I had what it took, and this moment has been a long time coming, I guess, so, it's really awesome to have them here and celebrate the moment with me."
- with Ben Glover in Livigno
