Who is Lucas Pinheiro Braathen? Can the Brazilian skier bring South America’s first Winter Olympics gold medal at Milano Cortina 2026

Brazilian skier Lucas Pinheiro Braathen produced a brilliant opening run to lead the men’s Olympic giant slalom on Saturday. He clocked 1 minute 13.92 seconds on the Stelvio course and moved ahead of a strong field. The race is not yet complete, but his performance has already created a historic moment. If he holds the lead after the second run, he could deliver South America’s first medal at a Winter Olympic Games, a landmark moment for the region.The competition still had many skiers left in the first run among the 81 starters, including athletes from smaller winter sport nations. The second and final run will take place later the same day. The fastest 30 racers will start in reverse order based on time, meaning Braathen will ski last. That position often brings pressure because every competitor’s time is known before the final run begins.Starting first in the course gave Lucas Pinheiro Braathen an advantage. The snow surface was smooth and fast early in the morning. He attacked the gates with clean turns and strong speed. His run placed him 0.95 seconds ahead of Switzerland’s Marco Odermatt, the defending Olympic champion in giant slalom.Odermatt was the only skier to finish within a second of the Brazilian. His teammates Loic Meillard and Thomas Tumler followed in third and fourth place, more than one and a half seconds slower. France’s Leo Anguenot ranked fifth. Norway’s Henrik Kristoffersen struggled to match the pace and trailed by almost two seconds.Braathen was born in Norway but now represents Brazil, the homeland of his mother. He changed nations after a dispute with the Norwegian ski federation. The decision has now put him close to making Olympic history.No athlete representing Latin America has ever won a Winter Olympic medal. Brazil’s best individual result remains Isabel Clark Ribeiro’s ninth place in snowboard cross at the 2006 Turin Games. In alpine skiing, the top finish came from Chile’s Thomas Grob, who was 11th in the combined event at the 1998 Nagano Olympics.The final run will decide everything. With a large lead but strong rivals behind him, Braathen must repeat his aggressive skiing to secure a place on the podium.