There's no guarantee skimo is back at the 2030 Olympics. I took it all in Thursday. The wild races. The history. The competitors — one of which tried to make the Olympics in **three** other sports before trying skimo. An ode to those who love the climb: www.nytimes.com/athletic/705...

What's it like when the President of the United States calls you a "loser" before you compete in your first Olympics? “Probably the hardest two weeks of my life," Hunter Hess says. Then he aced his run Friday and flashed an 'L' at the finish line: www.nytimes.com/athletic/705...

He paints his nails. He samba dances. And he retired three years ago, only to reinvent himself. A skier representing Brazil(!) just beat Marco Odermatt, the sport's reigning king, to win gold in super-G? Lucas Pinheiro Braathen is one of a kind. So is his story: www.nytimes.com/athletic/704...

There's no media spotlight at the Olympics quite like what Eileen Gu faces. Two hours to get thru interviews? And with her success comes more scrutiny about her choice to ditch the US and represent China, how it's benefited her, and how she justifies it. www.nytimes.com/athletic/704...

" I wanna go for it, because that's what I do." Chloe Kim had one run left, and a decision to make at the top of the hill: play it safe ... or drop the hammer. "Exciting but terrifying," her boyfriend, Myles Garrett, called it. Story from Livigno: www.nytimes.com/athletic/704...

“To have a call like that, at the Olympics, pretty much stripping it away from me, it’s hard to deal with." On a brutal ending, some he-said he-said dissent, and a difficult day for American Nathan Pare: www.nytimes.com/athletic/704...

The moral of Ryan Cochran-Seigle's story? Boot and rally. www.nytimes.com/athletic/703...

Chloe Kim tore her labrum 34 days ago. She wasn’t back on a board until 2 weeks ago. She hasn’t competed in 10 months. No matter. “I might be better at snowboarding than I am at walking,” she said. But how’s she doing all this with a dislocated shoulder?? www.nytimes.com/athletic/703...

Due to a recent injury — a torn labrum in January — Kim’s challenge looks as steep as Livigno’s 23-foot halfpipe walls. The risk is obvious, but so is the reward. “I think the Olympic gold medal is too enticing not to try.” ✍️ @zakkeefer.bsky.social

Chloe Kim is on the brink of Olympic history. She could become the first halfpipe snowboarder — male or female — to win three consecutive gold medals.

Can a silver medal mean more to an Olympian than a gold? Alex Hall says yes. Let him explain why: www.nytimes.com/athletic/703...

She was one of our first female star athletes to grow up in the social media era — she has the receipts to prove it. At one point, she hated winning. After Beijing, she wasn't sure she'd be back. On Chloe Kim, chasing history with a dislocated shoulder: www.nytimes.com/athletic/703...

One of America's most unique Olympians goes for back-to-back golds today. "Maybe the most successful ski bum on the planet" spends his winters in a van with his buddies, filming tricks. He loves Google earth. He keeps his gold medal in a sock drawer. www.nytimes.com/athletic/696...

Morning walk through Bormio 🇮🇹

"It really runs contrary to everything the Olympics should be." "We need to lead with love and compassion ... I'd love to see more of that." Chloe Kim and Eileen Gu chime in on Donald Trump's criticisms of Hunter Hess. www.nytimes.com/athletic/703...

On Sunday, President Trump called US snowboarder Hunter Hess "a real Loser." On Monday here in Livigno, snowboarding star Chloe —daughter to two immigrants — offered up her opinion on the matter: www.nytimes.com/athletic/703...

"That haunted me for nine years. I just decided ... 'F— living with regret. I'm doing this, even if it all blows up in my face.'" She retired at 20, became a plumber, then nine years later gave her Olympic dream one last shot: www.nytimes.com/athletic/700...

She won gold in 2022 — then felt empty, aimless and unmotivated. She could hear an angel on one shoulder, the devil on another. Mathilde Gremaud — who just qualed first in slopestyle skiing — peels back the curtain on the hidden side of Olympic success: www.nytimes.com/athletic/702...

"That haunted me for nine years. I just decided ... 'F— living with regret. I'm doing this, even if it all blows up in my face.'" She retired at 20, became a plumber, then nine years later gave her Olympic dream one last shot: www.nytimes.com/athletic/700...

She turned pro at 14. She quit at 20, never wanting to touch a snowboard again. She ended up in AA. She worked as a plumber. Now — at age 31 — she’s chasing an Olympic medal in Italy. Maddy Schaffrick’s remarkable story: www.nytimes.com/athletic/700...

👋🏻 Greetings from Bormio, Italy

She turned pro at 14. She quit at 20, never wanting to touch a snowboard again. She ended up in AA. She worked as a plumber. Now — at age 31 — she’s chasing an Olympic medal in Italy. Maddy Schaffrick’s remarkable story: www.nytimes.com/athletic/700...

Good week to learn about how the voice of the Super Bowl and Olympics studio host Mike Tirico got his start in broadcasting (included: a great Lee Corso story!)

After three medals and three Olympics, Nick Goepper was finished. He retired at 28, ready to move on. Then he had a crazy idea. In a few weeks, he'll try to do something no male skier has ever done in Olympic history: www.nytimes.com/athletic/697...

At 22, he came the width of a nickel from never skiing again. At the top of the hill, he still battles those doubts — what might happen — if were to slip while soaring down the side of a mountain at 80 mph. The risks of Ryan Cochran-Sielge: www.nytimes.com/athletic/696...

First of several Olympic stories from me — He spends a chunk of his winter driving around the country in a van with his buddies, filming tricks. He keeps his Olympic gold medal in his sock drawer. He might be the most successful ski bum on the planet: www.nytimes.com/athletic/696...

No Super Bowl for me this year — off to Italy to cover the Winter Olympics for @theathletic.com. In the mountains with @bfquinn.bsky.social for a few weeks, writing about skiing and snowboarding. Beyond pumped. Have wanted to cover the Games since Michael Johnson's 200m win in gold spikes in '96.

"They wanted us to make arrests. It wasn't just about going after the violent individuals ... to me, it felt political." Great read from @danpompei.bsky.social on why Peanut Tillman walked away from the FBI www.nytimes.com/athletic/689...

"Don't let our relationship ever impact what's best for the organization," Chris Ballard told the Irsay sisters. In other words: If you wanna move on, I get it. Instead, Ballard gets a 10th season. w/ @jourdanrodrigue.bsky.social, why this calculus was different: www.nytimes.com/athletic/694...

In early December, before the season fell apart, Carlie Irsay-Gordon wrote on a whiteboard at the Colts facility: "The things which hurt, instruct." What's the Colts' new owner **really** like? A profile from @jourdanrodrigue.bsky.social www.nytimes.com/athletic/689...

“We couldn’t stop a nosebleed.” “Our fans deserve better.” The shame of it is the 44-year-old high school coach did his part. The defense did not. And it speaks to a bigger issue — again, this team is fading with its season on the line: www.nytimes.com/athletic/691...

Is there any chance this actually works? Philip Rivers called Frank Reich on Tuesday morning while he weighed his decision. "I do think he gives them the best chance to win the division and get to the playoffs," Reich said. "I'm not afraid to say that." www.nytimes.com/athletic/687...

"Maybe you get a beer named after you, or maybe you close a Tony Robbins seminar at midnight, or maybe you just drop your kid at school and hit golf balls in paradise ..." @brianchamilton.bsky.social on the happiest men in the NFL, long snappers: www.nytimes.com/athletic/680...

I went on a journey — to Las Vegas, San Diego, Dallas, and Buffalo — to learn about the NFL’s long-distance kicking revolution. From a camp of pro hopefuls to Brandon Aubrey, Cameron Dicker, Cam Little and more. Here’s my story on the art of kicking. www.nytimes.com/athletic/681...

Perfect match of subject and writer 👇🏼 A few years ago, stuck in a writing slump, The National frontman Matt Berninger started scribbling song lyrics on baseballs. It helped him find something. From @bfquinn.bsky.social www.nytimes.com/athletic/675...

The GM who'd grown stubborn and hard-headed and realized he was wrong. The coach who wanted obsession from his QB. The castoff who'd become an afterthought. A look inside the Colts' stunning revival: www.nytimes.com/athletic/671...

Mike Evans is one 1,000-yard season away from breaking Jerry Rice's all-time record, but his consistent excellence was born out of agony. Evans' father's murder drove him to the NFL. Vincent Jackson helped him stay there. http://dlvr.it/TN52V0

I went to Tampa to find out what made Mike Evans one of the baddest dudes in football. Turned out to be one of the realest interviews I've had in years. And it started with the night his uncle brutally murdered his father outside the home he was sleeping in: www.nytimes.com/athletic/660...

After it was over — after he'd authored the most successful season from a rookie QB in NFL history — he walled off the world for a few days. When the Super Bowl was on, he turned it off. "Couldn't watch," he says. Inside Jayden Daniels' road to Year 2: www.nytimes.com/athletic/656...

The story behind the story 👇🏻 www.nytimes.com/athletic/658...

Must-read here from Zak on a topic that will resonate with Bears fans

"Organizations fail young QBs before young QBs fail organizations." What led Kevin O'Connell to say this? And why do so many around the NFL agree? I spent 4 months asking Hall of Famers, No. 1 picks, busts, coaches + execs why teams keep breaking young QBs: www.nytimes.com/athletic/658...

From @theathletic.com: “I fell out of love,” Andrew Luck says, reducing one of the most shocking retirements in NFL history into five tidy words. Then, the game that was once brutally beaten out of him slowly began to pull him back in.

Andrew Luck knew he made the right decision by leaving the NFL. He just hated what he left behind. Read more: www.nytimes.com/athletic/654...

Pain took football away from Andrew Luck. “I fell out of love,” he says, reducing one of the most shocking retirements in NFL history into five tidy words. And then? Something happened that he didn’t see coming. http://dlvr.it/TMY2n9

"I was gonna play until I was 40 or 45," Andrew Luck tells me. To which I said, "Wait a minute, what?" After it was over, he found himself in a fog. "I can't be 30 years old and retired. This is ridiculous." Then something pulled him out of it: www.nytimes.com/athletic/654...

"I accidentally married Aaron Donald." "You can tell people I am delusional. I don't care ..." This story isn't just creepy, it's terrifying. Great reporting from @nathanfenno.bsky.social on the stalker who left a future Hall of Famer in fear www.nytimes.com/athletic/654...

New from me: a look inside the Colts' QB battle ⤵️ A reckoning at the top — about the mistakes they've already made with Anthony Richardson — and a surprising approach if 2025 doesn't go to plan: www.nytimes.com/athletic/652...

"No cellphones until middle school. Even then, they couldn't be used at dinner. And until 11th grade, they had to charge their phones at night in their parents' room." How do you raise a star QB in the social media age? Fascinating from @brucefeldmancfb.bsky.social www.nytimes.com/athletic/644...

From Kansas City: The Chiefs passed out the rings no one wanted this week. There was no ceremony, no real celebration. "A reminder," Patrick Mahomes called them. All they've thought about since February is making it back: www.nytimes.com/athletic/643...