India's premier alpine skier Arif Mohammad Khan secured a historic 39th place finish in the men's slalom event at the Milan Cortina Winter Olympic Games on February 16, 2026. Competing at the Stelvio Ski Centre in Bormio, Italy, Khan clocked a combined time of 2 minute 41.60 seconds across two runs, marking the best-ever performance by an Indian man in this discipline.
The 35-year-old athlete showed remarkable consistency, finishing 44th in the first run with a time of 1:22.12 and improving to 39th in the second run at 1:19.48. This performance shattered the previous Indian men's record held by Kishore Ratna Rai, who finished 49th at the 1988 Calgary Winter Olympics.
- Record Breaking Run — Khan's 39th place is India's highest men's slalom ranking
- Gold Medal Winner — Switzerland's Loic Meillard took gold with a time of 1:53.61
- Technical Mastery — Slalom requires navigating gates at high speeds on a zigzag course
While Arif Mohammad Khan celebrated a personal and national milestone, the gold went to Loic Meillard of Switzerland. Fabio Gstrein of Austria claimed silver, while Norway's Henrik Kristoffersen took home the bronze. Notably, Lucas Pinheiro Braathen of Brazil, who recently won giant slalom gold, failed to finish his first run after a slip.
This was Khan's second appearance at the Winter Olympics, following his debut at Beijing 2022. Having turned to crowdfunding to support his Olympic dreams, his 39th-place finish concludes India's campaign in Italy. Earlier in the games, teammate Stanzin Lundup finished 104th in the 10km freestyle cross-country skiing event.
