Charlotte Bankes suffered Winter Olympics heartbreak for the second Games in succession as she crashed out of the tournament in the quarter-finals.
It was the same result as in Beijing four years ago, when she was the heavy favourite to take the title.
Her build-up to this Games was considerably less smooth, having required two surgeries on a broken collarbone last year and only returning to competition in early December.
But fine results since then – a win in the mixed team event with Huw Nightingale in her first race back, and a subsequent individual victory and another podium finish in Dongbeiya last month – meant she was still a strong contender for a medal in Livigno.
A devastated Bankes was in tears as she summed up her performance as “disappointing”.
“It’s nothing to do with injuries and all that,” she said of the result. “It’s just a disappointing performance for me, and I’m just sorry for everybody watching, and all Team GB that supports us massively, and the team around me, because that’s kind of what I feel like, I disappointed everybody like that. It could have been a great show. I mean, we’re in Europe, our families are here, everything, but I didn’t manage to deliver.”
She told the BBC: “I feel like I’ve done exactly the same as four years ago. We have worked incredibly hard to improve that but I haven’t made any difference today. I have been struggling with the track all the week but we thought we found solutions. I really wanted this one. Too many mistakes.
“I am normally good at making the overtakes and I kind of made a good start until I made a mistake and that killed my speed. Didn’t manage to find the space.
“I was hoping to put on a better show. It can be cruel.”
The four-time Olympian was only seeded ninth after a poor qualifying run, which made her path to the final significantly tougher.
She made a strong start in a tight round of 16 heat, sweeping round a corner to lead into the second half of the 1.1km course, and crossed 0.15 seconds clear of Switzerland’s eighth seed, Sina Siegenthaler.
But the 30-year-old was drawn against both Siegenthaler and top seed Eva Adamczykova of Czechia in her quarter-final, and despite being quickest off the blocks she quickly fell back into last place.
With only the top two advancing from each round she had an uphill battle to chase back on, and despite a valiant effort she couldn’t get back into contention.
Adamczykova and 17th seed Josie Baff advanced from that quarter-final, and it was indicative of how difficult Bankes’ quarter-final was that the Australian ultimately won gold from the Czech.
2025 world champion and Pyeongchang Olympic gold medallist Michela Moioli of Italy – who beat Bankes to the world title last year – took bronze.
In Beijing four years ago Bankes was the reigning world champion and her exit in the quarter-final was a huge shock.
Asked whether she would continue and target the 2030 Olympics, which will be held in the French Alps near where she grew up, despite two gruelling and ultimately unsuccessful Olympic cycles, she said: “I enjoy my sport. I mean, days like this, you don’t. They’re hard, but it also makes the successes even sweeter.
“There’s been setbacks in a lot of things, even the last four years, we’ve struggled. I mean, there’s been a lot that hasn’t been seen.
“I’ve had an injury as well in the last nine months, but we came in incredibly strong. Not everything has gone my way, but that’s sport, and I think, I mean, in the last four years, what I’ve managed to be on the World Cup, and the number of wins I’ve managed to get, we were in the right position. We have done the right work to get here and perform.”
Bankes will return to action on Sunday in the mixed team event, competing alongside 24-year-old Huw Nightingale. The pair are the 2023 world champions in the disicipline and won the mixed race in Cervinia, Italy in December, and will have another chance to fight for a medal.
Bankes said: “I’m still confident going into the team event. There are no issues with the track — I just haven’t ridden at my best this week. We’ve seen before how quickly things can turn around in our sport. It’s tight racing, and anything can happen.”
The result means Team GB’s medal drought continues. Out of a potential seven medal chances in snowsport in Livigno, three have gone by the wayside, with Kirsty Muir, Zoe Atkin, Mia Brookes still to compete next week alongside the mixed team snowboard cross pair.
Earlier on Friday there was a better result for Team GB’s Andrew Musgrave in the cross-country skiing 10km interval start, who beat his own British record with a new best result of sixth.
