CORTINA D'AMPEZZO, Italy (AP) — Federica Brignone was taking in the magnitude of winning a second gold of her home Winter Olympics when the two silver-medalists approached the Italian skiing star in the finish area, dropped to their knees and bowed toward her.
Call her the Queen of the Dolomites.
The 35-year-old Brignone couldn’t walk for three months early last year. Now she is a double Olympic champion after winning the giant slalom on Sunday, barely
72 hours after powering to the downhill title that she felt was like something out of a Hollywood movie.
She delivered quite the sequel, taking a lead of 0.34 seconds after the first run and then putting in a clean second run in gorgeous conditions in the Dolomite Mountains above Cortina.
Brignone finished 0.62 seconds ahead of defending champion Sara Hector and Thea Louise Stjernesund, who shared the silver medal.
“That was, like, the greatest show of GS skiing that we’ve had in a really long time,” said U.S. standout Mikaela Shiffrin, who finished in 11th place. “And to do it, you know, at the Olympics where people actually have eyes on the sport. Federica skied incredible. That was so cool to watch.”
It wasn't quite so enjoyable for Shiffrin.
The American didn't have the speed of Brignone or a number of her rivals in either run and ended 0.92 seconds off the lead. She has now failed to win a medal in eight straight Olympic races since the Winter Games in 2018.
Redemption for Shiffrin could come in her best event — the slalom — on Wednesday and she didn't show any outward signs of disappointment, blowing out her cheeks and waving to the fans in the grandstand with both hands after her second run.
By that time, the locals were waiting for Brignone to come down for a second gold in four days and she delivered.
It completes a stunning comeback for the popular Brignone, who was world champion in the GS in February last year before breaking multiple bones in her left leg in March that required surgery, a handful of screws to repair and left her unable to walk until the summer.
Before these home Games, Brignone had a silver and two bronzes at the Olympics. Now she has the big one — twice.
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AP Olympics: https://apnews.com/hub/milan-cortina-2026-winter-olympics
