When Italy hosts the 2026 Olympic Winter Games this February, one of the nation’s top divers, Sara Jodoin Di Maria, will be especially interested, because she was originally a ski racer.
On February 6, when the 2026 Olympic Winter Games open in Milano-Cortina, the Italian diving team will be four hours east of the host city, vying for national titles in Trieste.
But if there’s any downtime, Sarah Jodoin Di Maria will try to watch the snowy Olympic coverage any chance she can get, because the two-time Olympic diver was an alpine ski racer – even before she was a diver – in her native Canada.
“I love skiing!” she said. “I’ve been skiing since I was 19 months old. I raced from age 7 to 14 [but] quit because I started diving at 13 and I still did gymnastics till I was 16. One year, I did all three sports and was training more than 50 hours a week, so I had to stop something.”
Gymnastics and diving complemented each other, so she dropped skiing. Also, she said, “I knew I could still ski without competing, whereas in gymnastics, you can’t. Diving is the same. Maybe on vacation, but – you’re not going to go diving every weekend.”
Asked whether she missed racing in minus-10-degree weather, she admitted, “a little. Specifically, I miss the sound of the gates. I don’t know why. If I could, I would like to go do gates for maybe a day or two.”
Another cool thing about skiing, she said, is that “in skiing, you just go as fast as you can; a judge doesn’t decide the result. It’s a bit like swimming that way. You just go. And if you don’t get every gate right, it’s not the end of the world.” But one error in diving means… “you get a 6.”
She knows that the Italian downhiller Sofia Goggia will probably be the face of the Games for Italy, even though Jodoin Di Maria hasn’t had much time to follow the World Cup Alpine circuit. Not only is the 10m specialist busy training to represent Italy at the 2028 LA Games, but she’s also finishing her Master’s thesis on digital marketing at the summer Olympics. Yet her attraction to the Winter Olympics remains as strong as it was when she saw her first Winter Games on TV.
The year was 2010, and the Games were in Vancouver. Her best friend’s mother coached Canadian figure skaters Jessica Dube and Bryce Davison (who placed sixth in pairs) and Cynthia Phaneuf (who finished 12th in ladies’ singles).
“We would always try to spot her on TV, so that sport had special meaning for me,” she said.
While Jodoin Di Maria can’t recall if she ever did see her friend’s mom at the side of the rink that year, she clearly remembers the emotional performance by Canadian skater Joannie Rochette.
Rochette’s mother died unexpectedly two days before the short program yet, even while grieving, Joannie earned the bronze medal.
“I don’t know how she did it, honestly,” Jodoin Di Maria said. “It was beautiful.”
Looking ahead, Jodoin Di Maria will have another personal reason to watch this year’s Winter Games. Her old friend from gymnastics camp, Marion Thénault, will be vying for the podium in women’s aerials skiing. At the last Winter Olympics, in Beijing 2022, Thénaut helped Canada claim bronze in the new team aerials event and placed seventh individually.
The two sports (aerials and diving) share many traits: they’re both judged; they both reward precision and difficulty; and they both entail flipping and spinning.
In the summer, aerials skiers even practice their tricks into water. In Quebec City, Jodoin Di Maria has watched them ski down plastic ramps, launch off the big upturned lip at the end, throw a series of backflips and spins (while wearing heavy ski equipment), and land (skis first) in the water.
But it’s rare for athletes to switch from one sport to the other.
“I’m surprised there’s not more crossover,” Jodoin Di Maria said.
“I would have liked to do it – maybe. I’m not sure,” she said, referring to aerials and the water ramps. “I feel like it’s a bit dangerous. Maybe I would have liked skiing moguls better. They race through the bumps, have two jumps, and the jumps are smaller.
“It’s a bit too late” to change now, said the 25-year-old platform specialist, but she still skis as much as possible in Canada, for fun. In fact, she was planning a weekend ski trip in early December, right after this interview. But the Dolomites remain sacred ground.
“I’ve never skied in Italy,” she said. “Honestly, I have to. I need to.”
Unfortunately, Cortina is a world away from her training center in Rome. “It’s very far, at least a seven-hour drive,” she said, “but, I mean, I need to do it!”
Until then, she’ll have to be content appreciating the Italian peaks and the Games on a flat screen between Feb 6 to 22 to cheer on old friends and compatriots.
As for any young divers who might be tempted to try a winter sport, the ex-ski racer said, “It’s a good idea! They’re [almost] all outdoors, so it’s very healthy. If you have a dream – whether it’s winter or summer – it’s the same dream, so go for it! Try your best, and if it happens, if happens. If not, then you have the experience of competing a different life.”