'Next time': Australia falls just short of podium in mixed team aerials after staggering performance to make final
Updated . First published at
Australia has fallen just short of clinching an unlikely seventh medal at Milano Cortina 2026 after the mixed aerials team secured a spot in the four-team final after another stunning jump from silver medallist Danielle Scott.
Scott, the only member of the three-skier Australian team capable of performing a triple, scored a personal best 120.20 to catapult the team made up of Abbey Willcox and Reilly Flanagan into the bronze medal position but she was unable to match those heroics in the four-team final.
Fighting for three medals with USA, China and Switzerland, Australia got off to a poor start in the final when Willcox was unable to land her back-full double full cleanly, to score an 64.86 which would be the second lowest scoring jump of the final.
READ MORE: 'What the hell?': Unseen side of Jonah Lomu-like teen freak
READ MORE: A-League goalie in 'absolute catastrophe' with 70m blunder
READ MORE: Eels forward's future in doubt amid Lomax contract saga
Scott, competing second for Australia, once again landed her back-triple full but was marked harshly by the judges, scoring a 95.30 to effectively end Australia's hopes of a medal.
Flanagan's best ever competition jump, which scored 95.88, was a fantastic way to end his debut Olympic Games but his relatively low degree of difficulty back-double full-full was never going to be enough to lift his team into the medals. Australia's total score of 256.04 was almost 25 points shy of China's bronze medal winning 325.35. USA won the gold with 325.35, while Switzerland won silver with 296.91.
Abbey Willcox falls as she competes in the medal final. Getty
Willcox knew she had to put down one of her best jumps of her career to put Australia in the reckoning for medals but over-rotated on her jump and failed to stick the landing, just as her Swiss rival Lina Kozomara had done just before her.
"That has thrown a spanner in the works. That is pressure," Todd Woodbridge said in commentary for Nine.
Willcox did still manage to earn a score 20.47 higher than Kozomara's.
The USA and China then set the tone for the gold medal showdown with scores over 90, putting more pressure on Australia's marquee skier Scott.
The silver medallist was forced to adapt to changed lighting and an increase snowfall, but all but replicated her first jump. Her landing was deeper, with her knees bending significantly to keep her on her feet and she was marked down significantly for that flaw. Herscore of 95.30 put Australia seven points behind Switzerland on the standings.
Scott admitted after the final that she hoped the judges would be a little kinder.
"To get a 120 on the first jump, that was my personal best," she told Australian media, including Wide World of Sports, in Livingo.
"A 95 was OK. The landing was deep ... but sometimes you just have to take what you get."
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.
Danielle Scott celebrates. Getty
Not even a mishap by China's second jumper could help boost Australia's spot on the table, with Switzerland returning with a stellar third jump to secure the bronze medal.
Flanagan, while he didn't have the same difficulty level in his jump as the Swiss, performed a solid jump to secure a combined score of 256.04 for Australia.
A massive blunder on the final jump for China, with Li Tianma falling hard over the top of his skis when attempting to land, had Australia on the edge of their seats as they awaited the scores to be revealed.
"I think we might have a medal," Australian great Lydia Lassila said in commentary for Nine after the fall.
"That was a hard punch, he just landed too short, going over the handlebars and ejecting. It is a nice double full, double full, but it is a little bit messy.
"There was no landing on that, so he will be docked for that."
Tianma Li falls as he competes during the Mixed Team Aerials Final 2. Getty
While Li did not successfully land his jump, the higher degree of difficulty of the jump kept China on the podium.
"It is easy to get excited a little bit too quickly, but they just had that higher degree of difficulty," Scott said.
"Unfortunately, we just need to get some more training and we will have some bigger tricks next time. We will come back stronger."
- with Ben Glover in Livigno
