US Olympic skier opens up on evolution of rivalry with Canada ahead of 2026 Winter Games

American men's skiing Olympic medalist Alex Ferreira opened up to Fox News Digital about the intense skiing rivalry between the U.S. and Canada that will be renewed at the 2026 Milano Cortina Winter Games.

Wednesday marks six months until the start of the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milano Cortina. Team USA will renew its winter rivalry with Canada in the first Olympics in a new geopolitical landscape in North America. 

American men's skiing medalist Alex Ferreira, entering his third Winter Games, told Fox News Digital he has always seen Canada as one of his country's biggest rivals in his sport, alongside New Zealand. 

"New Zealand and Canada are the two biggest rivals," Ferreira said, pointing to Canadian Brendan Mackay as one of his top individual rivals. 

"Some of the most intense competitions I've had with some of the Canadians was in 2023, the Bakuriani, Georgia, World Championships with Brendan Mackay and myself. Brendan ended up winning. … Brendan skied really great there." 

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But, in 2026, Ferreira believes the rivalry will "probably" burn even hotter, citing the tensions created by recent U.S. tariffs imposed on Canadian goods earlier this year. 

"Probably, because what [President Donald] Trump is saying about the tariffs and everything, I'm sure there's a bit of rivalry going on there. But, certainly the Canadians, like Brendan is getting better every single day. I myself am training every single day. So, I think we both just really want to win," Ferreira said. 

"You just want to represent your country as best as possible, and being American, I just, of course, I want to win. They're our neighbors up north, and they're great people. But I want to beat them." 

Al