After bronze in Beijing, Canada's mixed aerials team eyes bigger prize in Milano Cortina

Almost four years ago at the inaugural competition for mixed team aerials at the Winter Olympics in Beijing, three Canadians took home bronze medals.

Lewis Irving, Marion Thénault and Miha Fontaine – the first Canucks to reach an Olympic podium in the discipline since Veronica Brenner and Deidra Dionne won silver and bronze, respectively, at Salt Lake City 2002 – intend to take off with another next year.

They’ll attempt it at the Livigno Aerials & Moguls Park in Italy, where 3,000 onlookers will surround the course at the base of the mountain as dozens of athletes soar to reach the highest bar in Winter Sports.

But before Milano Cortina 2026 caps off this season, they are abroad and training at Genting Snow Park in China, the site of their bronze-medal win at the Beijing Olympics four years ago.

Stepping toward a Winter Games unburdened by low audience numbers and the COVID-19 pandemic, the three reflected on their experience in China, and what they each aim to achieve come February. 

“If you’re not having fun, how can you even perform?”

That’s what Fontaine told CBC Sports shortly after winning bronze at his first Olympic appearance, downplaying the gravity of the competition despite first-time nerves.

“All the memories we got from four years ago are being brought back,” he said on returning to Genting.

There, on the snow in February 2022, Fontaine landed his first quadruple twisting double backflip.

Since then, he has done hundreds while competing on the World Cup circuit.

But for Fontaine, constant progression is paramount. 

Over the past three summers, he has put in the work and added more rotation to his jumps, bringing it to five twists; a difficult move he intends to bring to the Winter Olympics.

“Sometimes, it's a bit more rough, but I always try to go back to that state of mind: to have fun and not get overwhelmed by everything,” he said. 

“That's the key to success for me.”