Canada’s Mark McMorris has been medically cleared to compete in the men’s slopestyle event at the Milan Cortina 2026 Olympic Winter Games, officials confirmed Thursday, following a crash during big air practice on February 4th.
The 32-year-old McMorris sustained a head injury during the training run in Livigno, Italy, forcing him to withdraw from the big air competition. He was transported to a hospital as a precaution, according to Team Canada.
“I took a fall last night, I hit my head and I will not be able to compete in big air tonight, unfortunately,” McMorris said in a social media post. “But fortunately, things are looking up for slopestyle, so [I’m] just trying to stay positive and shift my focus to that event.”
Medical personnel loaded McMorris onto a stretcher after the crash on Wednesday evening. He was evaluated by both Canada Snowboard and the Canadian Olympic Committee medical teams before receiving clearance for the slopestyle competition, which is scheduled to commence on February 16th in Livigno.
McMorris is a three-time Olympic bronze medalist, having won medals in slopestyle at the 2014 Sochi Games, the 2018 PyeongChang Games, and the 2022 Beijing Games. He has faced numerous injuries throughout his career, including a severe crash in 2017 that resulted in a broken jaw and left arm, a ruptured spleen, pelvic and rib fractures, and a collapsed lung.
Despite the recent setback, McMorris expressed optimism about his recovery and ability to compete in slopestyle. “I haven’t been on my phone much, but the messages do not go unnoticed,” he said. “So, thank you. I will keep you updated and much love.”
Teammate Frank Jobin qualified for the big air final, finishing sixth of 12 qualifiers on Thursday.
