?

LIVIGNO, Italy -- An early fall in the first run, a video call with her mother, a cup of coffee, then a comeback run to seal her place in the final. China's freestyle skiing star Gu Ailing once again showed why she remains one of the most compelling figures in winter sports.

On the first rail of her first run in the slopestyle qualifying round at Livigno Snow Park, Gu, who dominated headlines at Beijing 2022, crashed early. The score was a mere 1.26 points.

"It was pretty unbelievable," she recalled later. "I was like, what just happened?"

The 22-year-old described the trick, a switch unnatural tail grab on the rail, as one she "had never fallen on before." "I watched the video, and it looked like I just came off. It was kind of hesitant. I looked a little fragile, a little uncertain," she said.

She embraced her mother at the bottom and made a video call after returning to the starting point. "We were both pretty just confused," Gu said. Her mother's remedy was snacks, some dessert and a cup of coffee.

Wearing a ski suit featuring a Chinese dragon and blue-and-white ceramic patterns, Gu said, "by the time I got to the front of the gate, there was zero doubt in my mind that I was going to land. I was totally calm."

"I told myself that I have worked so hard. It's not that I love skiing, it's that I'm obsessed with it," she added. "If there's anyone to bet on at this moment, I want to bet on myself."

Her second run, a composed display scoring 75.30, was the second-best of the day, securing her place in the final.

"I always say that 50% of competitive free skiing is skill and 50% is mental," Gu said. "It's about being the best on the day when it counts. That's hard. And that's what the Olympics are also about, peaking at the right time."

Gu, who won two golds and a silver at Beijing 2022, said she is approaching the 2026 Games with a different mindset.

"It's my second Olympics, but it's also my first second Olympics," she said with a smile. "I train like I've never won, and I compete like I've never lost. I'm coming into this as a rookie in my head, but at the same time I also have nothing to prove."

At Beijing 2022, she also fell on her slopestyle run in the final before rallying to silver. "I always joke, why can't I just have an easy first run?" she said.

The journey between the two Games included a shoulder injury that sidelined her for the 2025 FIS World Championships and a training accident in New Zealand last August. Her return to form was highlighted by a World Cup win in Switzerland last month.

Italy holds special significance for Gu. "I first won a World Cup in Italy when I was 15," she said, also referring to her parallel career in fashion. "I've opened and closed shows at Milan Fashion Week."

Gu's performance also capped a strong day for China, which qualified three of four athletes in women's slopestyle.

"I'm very proud and happy to be with my teammates today," she said. "Of course there is competition [within the team], but I've always said my opponent is myself. When I ski, I'm not thinking about others. I'm thinking about how I can be my best, how I can represent this sport."

Looking to the final, Gu said, "New run, actually totally new run. So keep an eye out. One word, rails!"

The women's slopestyle final will take place on Monday in Livigno. Gu is also scheduled to compete in halfpipe and possibly big air, continuing her bid for more success on the Olympic stage.