This Olympic sport will be cut from the 2026 Winter Games

WASHINGTON — The Winter Olympics are just a few months away, bringing eight new sports to the competition. 

However, one sport was notably cut from the Olympic schedule for the 2026 Winter Games.

The alpine skiing mixed parallel event will not make its return next February, ending its short run on the Olympic stage. The event had been part of the World Championships for over a decade before making its Olympic debut in PyeongChang in 2018. It was then added to the 2022 Beijing Winter Games schedule, serving as the last alpine skiing event. 

The format consisted of the 16 best teams in Alpine skiing seeded in a single-eliminations style bracket. The events started with a round of 16, followed by quarter finals, semi finals and the final event. 

Each team could have up to six skiers. During each round, four skiers from each country, two men and two women, would take on four skiers from another country. The two opponents ski at the same time on two identical courses, which sit side-by-side on the slope. 

The winner of each race wins a point for their team. If both skiers fall or miss a gate, the skier who progressed the farthest won the point. The country with the most points after the four races wins. If the score is 2-2, then the team with the best aggregate time wins.

There will be eight new events to look forward to at the 2026 Winter Olympics, including a brand new sport never before seen at the Olympic Games. 

Ski mountaineering will make its official Olympic debut at the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Games, alongside seven other new competitions across existing disciplines. 

• Ski mountaineering: men’s sprint, women’s sprint and mixed-gender relay

• Freestyle skiing: men’s and women’s dual moguls

• Open luge: women’s doubles

• Skeleton: mixed-gender team event

• Ski jumping: women’s large hill event