If you know ski cross, you know the name Marielle Thompson. Marielle was just 19 when she earned her first World Cup gold medal in 2012, ending the season with a total of six World Cup podiums. She topped the World Cup rankings in women’s ski cross, which put her in the history books as the first Canadian ski cross racer to win a Crystal Globe. At Sochi 2014, Marielle Thompson made sure the women’s Olympic ski cross gold medal remained in Canadian hands. Marielle carried her winning momentum through the rest of the 2014 season and ended the season with her second Crystal Globe. Marielle claimed her third Crystal Globe in 2016-17, posting wins in seven of 13 starts.

 

Just making it to her second Olympic Games at PyeongChang 2018 was an achievement - in October 2017, Marielle ruptured her ACL and MCL during a training run and underwent surgery. She was still named to the 2018 Olympic team, and in her first race after the injury, she posted the fastest time in the Olympic qualification round before her elimination in the 1/8 finals. After another reconstructive surgery in 2021, she managed to recover for the start of the 2021-22 season, and she earned her 25th career World Cup victory and her 50th career World Cup podium. She returned to the Olympic podium at Beijing 2022, winning the silver medal for Canada. In 2024, Marielle won another Crystal Globe, becoming the World Cup Ski Cross Champion for an unprecedented fourth time.

A beloved Canadian icon, Marielle will make her mark on the mountain at Milan 2026.