Team USA soars to gold in mixed teams aerials – NBC Los Angeles

Team USA defended their Olympic gold in mixed team aerials with another win at the Milan Cortina Games.

Freestyle skiers Kaila Kuhn, Connor Curran and Chris Lillis earned a combined top score of 325.35 for the gold medal. Team Switzerland takes the silver with 296.91, while China wins bronze with 279.68.

Kuhn started final two a bit shaky on her back full-full-full attempt, scoring 94.44 points. But Curran sticks a back full-double full-full to earn 113.72 points, catapulting Team USA into the lead.

It was then up to Lillis, the only returning member from the gold medal-winning team in Beijing in 2022. The Pittsford, New York, native skied down the in-run, flew into the air, and stomped his back double full-full-full attempt for a whopping 117.19 to solidify Team USA’s gold.

Saturday’s event was a last shot for Lillis to win a medal at the 2026 Milan Cortina Olympics. A day earlier, he came close to reaching the medal round in the men’s aerials but struggled with his landings and finished eighth, with only the top six athletes advancing to ski for a gold medal.

The three American freestyle skiers competing in the men’s aerials final on Friday– Chris Lillis, Derek Krueger, and Connor Curran – finished in 8th, 11th and 12th.

The trio also landed solid jumps in the first final to lead the board going into final two with a combined 351.23 points.

Kuhn was able to perform a redo of the jump she attempted in the women’s aerials finals, a back full-full-full that she failed to land for a fifth-place finish. This time around, the Michigan native’s execution was pristine in the first final and she scored a massive 106.98.

Lillis produced the highest score of the trio, earning 123.98 points on a well executed back double full-full-full in the first final. Curran, of Ohio, also received a high score of 120.36 for his back full-double full-full.

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