HPSNZ Update spoke with Snow Sports NZ General Manager High Performance, Luke Hetzel about what needs to happen between now and 2026 for athletes, coaches and support teams to ensure success in Milano Cortina.
Luke says there is a very clear focus for each year in a campaign’s four-year cycle. “Year 3’s focus is perform – that’s where we are now. It means qualifying and qualifying early. Year 4 is all about peaking – ensuring everything is laser focused so that athletes are prepared to achieve that success.”
Snow Sports NZ anticipates 15 to 18 Olympic and Paralympic athletes will be selected to represent New Zealand at Milano Cortina 2026.
Luke and his team have two clear priorities for the year ahead. “Snow Sports NZ is a medal winning programme. We will zero in on what will provide our medal capable athletes the conditions required to perform at their best and find themselves a spot on the podium. Some of our athletes will be targeting personal best performances on their way to podiums in 2030, but you never know on the day how things will land – we know we’ll be proud of all our athletes, and they will leave it all on the table in Milan,” says Luke.
“Our second priority is to respond to athletes’ needs with a very individual focus. Snow Sports athletes are individuals and every one of them has different needs, experiences and approaches. Take an experienced athlete like Zoi (Sadowski-Synnott) – she is a very accomplished Olympian and can build on that experience for success in Milan. Conversely, one of our rising stars, Luca (Harrington) hasn’t yet had that Olympic Games experience so he and his team will be working on coming into a new experience prepared for whatever the Games can throw at him.”
If all athletes have an individual focus, so too they all have different summer plans.
“Our athletes are currently winding up the northern hemisphere season and will be heading back home in mid-April. Then there is a kind of scattering effect. Some will take the last chance to have a breather and focus on off-snow training, others will continue to seek time on snow.
“Some will want to head to locations that have facilities which are specific to their discipline, such as landing bags and dry slope facilities, some of which will be available in Wānaka with our new Dryslope Project on track to open this year. Our halfpipe athletes will likely head to Mount Hood in Oregon for a summer halfpipe camp.”
Snow Sports NZ has set some very clear objectives about athletes’ qualifying. “We have worked closely with the HPSNZ Performance and Technique Analysis team to agree a target for a safe qualifying threshold with the goal to have athletes qualified by the end of the current international round of competition. Athletes need to secure two top 16 results to meet nomination criteria and to date our results are well ahead of the curve.
“Early qualification will take the edge and pressure off so that the focus for the lead in to Milano Cortina is on preparations and planning that will ensure athletes peak at the right time.”
Luke says some of the elite team, like alpine skier Alice Robinson, will likely pursue all events regardless of qualification. “Alice will likely do every event as she and her team look to target the Crystal Globe (the overall winner for the year) as well as Olympic success, although early qualification does still provide flexibility to change plans if required.”
New Zealand’s Paralympic team looks likely to be spearheaded by two vastly experienced and successful skiers – Adam Hall and Corey Peters.
“Adam has had a great start to his northern hemisphere block and Corey is getting back into the race gates after a recent injury. They are both also working with a new coach, Daniel Bogue, who brings strong advanced technical skiing capability to the coaching role.
“We also have a young para snowboarder who we are optimistic will qualify, as well as two sit skiers with exciting futures ahead.”
While there is a real sense of excitement now that Milano Cortina 2026 is just one year out, Luke and his team have a clear sense of purpose and priorities, predicated on preparation and planning to ensure performance success on the Italian slopes.
