Only 58 days until the start of the 2026 Olympics.
France And The Winter Olympics
Delegates of the competing nations gathered near Saint-Michel Church and the Hotel de Ville for the opening ceremony of the 1924 Winter Olympics in Chamonix, France, 25th January 1924. (Photo by Topical Press Agency/Hulton Archive/Getty Images)
Getty Images
Since their first appearance in 1924, French athletes have won a total of 138 medals at the Winter Olympics, with 41 gold, 42 silver, and 55 bronze medals, putting the country at 13th in overall medal rankings since 1924. Their most successful sports are Alpine skiing, with 51 medals (16 gold), and biathlon, with 32 medals (12 gold). France hosted the first Winter Olympics in Chamonix (1924) and hosted the games in Grenoble (1968) and Albertville (1992).
(Original Caption) 1968 Winter Olympics. Grenoble, France. Opening and/or closing events of the Olympics.
Bettmann Archive
Martin Fourcade is currently the most successful French Winter Olympian of all time. He is a six-time Olympic champion in various Biathlon events, including winning six gold medals and one silver medal at the Olympic Winter Games from 2010 to 2018.
TOPSHOT – France’s gold medallist Martin Fourcade reacts on the podium during the medal ceremony for the biathlon men’s 15km Mass Start at the Pyeongchang Medals Plaza during the Pyeongchang 2018 Winter Olympic Games in Pyeongchang on February 19, 2018. / AFP PHOTO / Kirill KUDRYAVTSEV (Photo credit should read KIRILL KUDRYAVTSEV/AFP via Getty Images)
AFP via Getty Images
Besides Fourcade, France’s greatest winter sports hero has otherwise been Alpine skier Jean-Claude Killy who won all three available gold medals at the 1968 Olympic Winter Games.
Jean-Claude Killy from France is seen during the men’s slalom of the Grenoble 1968 Winter Olympics in February 1968. (Photo by AFP) (Photo by -/AFP via Getty Images)
AFP via Getty Images
Below are several 2026 French Olympic hopefuls.
Figure Skaters Laurence Fournier-Beaudry and Guillaume Cizeron
TOPSHOT – France’s pair figure skaters Laurence Fournier-Beaudry and Guillaume Cizeron perform during the Women Ice Dance Free Dance, ISU 2025 Grand Prix de France, in Angers, western France, on October 19, 2025. (Photo by JEAN-FRANCOIS MONIER / AFP via Getty Images)
AFP via Getty Images
Guillaume Cizeron is a French pairs ice dancer. Cizeron won Olympic gold at Beijing 2022, silver in 2018 and five world titles with longtime partner Gabriella Papadakis while Fournier Beaudry was an eight-time Grand Prix medallist alongside Nikolaj Sørensen. The new duo paired up in January 2025. “It was a bit of a leap of faith into the void,” Cizeron added of their partnering. Well it paid off. The pair just won the Grand Prix de France October 19th with the fourth highest-ever score.
Biathlon Quentin Fillon Maillet
LENZERHEIDE, SWITZERLAND – FEBRUARY 20: Quentin Fillon Maillet of Team France crosses the finish line to win the Single Mixed Relay (W+M) with teammate Julia Simon of Team France during the IBU World Championships Biathlon Lenzerheide at Roland Arena on February 20, 2025 in Lenzerheide, Switzerland. (Photo by Alexander Hassenstein/Getty Images)
Getty Images
Fillon Maillet won two golds in Beijing in 2022 in the 20km individual and the 12.5km pursuit title. He also won silver medals in the 10km sprint, mixed 4x6km mixed relay and men’s 4×7.5 km relay. He was the first biathlete to win five medals at the same Games and the first man to do so in any winter sport since speed skater Eric Heiden at Lake Placid in 1980. “It’s incredible, I never expected it,” he said afterwards. He has secured a place in the French team and is a leading candidate to win medals at the upcoming Games.
Skier Clement Noel
PALISADES TAHOE, USA – FEBRUARY 25: Clement Noel of Team France in action during the Audi FIS Alpine Ski World Cup Men’s Slalom on February 25, 2024 in Palisades Tahoe, USA. (Photo by Alexis Boichard/Agence Zoom/Getty Images)
Getty Images
Noel competed in both the 2018 Pyeongchang and 2022 Beijing Games, winning a gold in the slalom in 2022. The 2026 Olympics will be the first to hold a Team combined event where two skiers compete in the downhill and a slalom. However, in the Team Combined, one competitor races the speed discipline and the other the slalom. Each participating nation can field up to four teams, with two athletes per team of the same gender. Noel could team up with World Cup winners Nils Allegre or Cyprien Sarrazin once he recovers from injury.
Freestyle Skier Perrine Laffont
CORVIGLIA, SWITZERLAND – MARCH 18: Perrine Laffont of Team France competes in the first run of the Women’s Moguls Qualification of the FIS Snowboard, Freestyle and Freeski World Championships 2025 on March 18, 2025 in Corviglia, St. Moritz, Switzerland. (Photo by David Ramos/Getty Images)
Getty Images
Perrine Laffont, 2018 Olympic gold medalist in the moguls event and five-time World Cup overall moguls champion, is returning back to form after a year break to focus on her mental and physical health. She is currently ranked second in the world behind Jaelin Kauf of the US in the mogul and dual mogul events. And she is excited about a new event in 2026: Dual Moguls.
Dual moguls is a freestyle skiing event where two athletes compete side by side on a bumpy course featuring two jumps, where they perform aerial tricks. The course is divided into two lanes and measures between 200 and 270 meters. Unlike traditional moguls, which are run individually without a direct opponent, dual moguls pit two competitors against each other simultaneously.
Biathlete Julia Simon
NOVE MESTO NA MORAVE, CZECH REPUBLIC – FEBRUARY 09: Julia Simon of France is pictured during the zeroing prior to the Women 7.5km Sprint Competition of the IBU World Championships Biathlon Nove Mesto na Morave on February 09, 2024 in Nove Mesto na Morave, Czech Republic. (Photo by Alex Grimm/Getty Images)
Getty Images
French biathlete Julia Simon has been handed a six-month competition ban by the French Ski Federation (FFS), but the 29-year-old will be able to compete in next year’s Milano Cortina Winter Olympics, the sports body said on Thursday.
Simon, who won the overall World Cup title in 2023 and holds 10 world championship gold medals, was also fined 30,000 euros ($34,986.00) by the FFS National Disciplinary Committee.
Freestyle Skier Tess Ledeux
BEIJING, CHINA – FEBRUARY 08: Tess Ledeux of Team France performs a trick during the Women’s Freestyle Skiing Freeski Big Air Final on Day 4 of the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympic Games at Big Air Shougang on February 08, 2022 in Beijing, China. (Photo by Justin Setterfield/Getty Images)
Getty Images
She has earned four gold medals at the Winter X Games: three in big air and one in slopestyle. At the 2022 X Games, she won two gold medals, in slopestyle and big air becoming the first woman to land a double cork 1620 in competition.
Ledeux also represented France at the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing, winning a silver medal in the women’s big air.
Milano-Cortina 2026
France should again have a competitive team for the 2026 Winter Olympics with a focus upon Alpine Skiing and Biathlon events. France’s medal count and ranking were slightly higher in 2018, primarily due to biathlete Martin Fourcade’s multi-medal performance. A feat that will likely not be duplicated in 2026. Alternatively, the first-time inclusion of ski mountaineering, a sport where France has strong contenders, could offer the country a new advantage in 2026.
Source: https://www.forbes.com/sites/timgenske/2025/12/10/the-milano-cortina-2026-olympics-team-france-hopefuls/
