Veteran duo Cai and Liu on board with nurturing the next generation

A scar and two crashes may be the unwanted souvenirs China's veteran snowboarders Cai Xuetong and Liu Jiayu are bringing home from Italy, but despite the pair signing off their Olympic finale in anything but perfect fashion, they still say the ride itself was their biggest reward.

With the level of halfpipe snowboarding pushed insanely high by teenaged talent — some almost half their age — the unremitting effort of the Chinese duo to keep up, despite having both competed into their 30s and participating at their fifth Olympics, has shone as brightly as any medal celebrated or record broken at the Milano-Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics.

In the Italian Alps, though, neither landed near their desired places.

Having won almost everything that there is to win on the World Cup circuit and at the world championships, Cai missed out on a coveted Olympic medal for a fifth straight time after a third-run crash in the final on Feb 12, having to settle for sixth place at the Livigno Snow Park.

Liu, who won silver in halfpipe at Pyeongchang 2018 to deliver China's first snowboarding Olympic medal, had to bow out earlier and in terrifying fashion. A hard, head-first fall in her second qualifying run left the 33-year-old out cold for over a minute, lying on the bottom of the slope before being stretchered away, denying her a final berth and requiring stitches for a cut just above her right eyebrow.

Their tricks may no longer be a match for the sport's best, nor their takeoffs the strongest — and their recovery from the wear and tear takes much longer — but the fun remains the same.

"I hope I will be remembered at my fifth Olympics, which are definitely going to be my last, for how cool and how stylish I look when I am riding," said Cai, a 32-year-old whose best result at the Games was a fourth-place finish on home snow at Beijing 2022.

"Yes, there are regrets. It would be a lie if I said I have none. I've managed to win everything except an Olympic medal. After five tries, to leave empty-handed, there is bound to be some regret. But that's life.

"It's OK, though, because I know this is really hard. If I had been able to get onto the podium today, it would've been like winning the lottery, because that's how hard it is."

In a clear display of youth's domination in women's halfpipe, South Korea's 17-year-old prodigy Choi Ga-on, after two failed runs, stunned two-time defending champion Chloe Kim of the United States by landing a do-or-die third run featuring three 900 tricks in a row to take gold on her Olympic debut.

The 25-year-old Kim, who beat Liu to claim her first Olympic gold in 2018, also aged 17, was the oldest among the top five, which included three teenagers.

Knowing that the benchmark has been elevated too high, Cai said her own measurement has always been herself.

"I did land the best run I'd prepared in training. I am completely satisfied with that," she said of her second run, when she connected a 1080 trick with a 900 stunt.

"It feels like I've reached a point where I can't improve any further. I've given my all, and this is as far as my potential will take me (at the Olympics).

"But, I'm still passionate about snowboarding. I won't leave it, no matter what kind of role I embrace next."

Liu, who carried a foot injury that occurred in training over a month ago to Italy, echoed the sentiment of her compatriot, refusing to quit riding.

"I lost my memory for over a minute, (it was a) total blackout," Liu recalled of her qualifying run crash. "Fortunately, it was just a wound on my head and no severe damage."

"This is the part of the sport that you embrace as much as the fun part of it," said Liu, who had indefinitely retired from competitive snowboarding after Beijing 2022 and started a doctoral degree at the Harbin Institute of Technology in her home province of Heilongjiang.

"This will also be my last Olympics, but I will continue snowboarding as well, helping train young riders and promoting the sport."

Sharing four world championships, 58 World Cup podiums and eight overall season titles between them in a career spanning 18 years, the combined accolades of the Chinese duo have already enshrined them in the sport's history.

Now, with another Olympic mark stamped on their resumes, Cai and Liu have joined retired legend Shaun White of the United States and his female counterpart Kelly Clark as members of the exclusive "five Winter Games club".

In a sport that demands exceptional athleticism to win, Cai and Liu have proved that passion can prevail beyond the proudest victories and hardest falls.

"As long as you still love it, as I do, you can snowboard as long as you like," said Cai. "It's a way of life."