For an athlete who has stood atop Olympic podiums, the moment still felt different.
This was home.
Before returning to Quebec, however, he faced a Canadian microscope. Alone atop the southwest slope of the Livigno Valley in Italy, Kingsbury looked 235 meters down the moguls course at Milano Cortina 2026 — a place the 29-time Crystal Globe winner once feared injury would keep him from.
“Even in December, it was hard to see myself competing at the Games. I was like, ‘I'm never going be ready; it's still going to be too painful.’ But we found a way.”
Kingsbury reached the moguls final, where he lost a tiebreak to Australia’s Cooper Woods. Still, the silver meant more than the color suggested.
“I was able to ski the way I wanted. For me, it’s five Olympic medals in five starts. Every time I’m in the start gate, I show up and give 100%. I won silver, but it tasted more like gold.”
Three days later, in the final Olympic run of his career, “The King” delivered. His gold in dual moguls restored Canada to the top of the podium and put a fitting bow on the career of the most decorated freestyle skier ever.
“I couldn’t have scripted it better,” said the longtime Habs fan.
“Like overtime,” the four-time Olympian said of his final against top-ranked Ikuma Horishima. “It’s the final I wanted. I wanted to win the Olympics against the best guy. He made a mistake, and I took advantage. Let’s say I had a breakaway and scored,” he described in hockey terms.
The double-medal performance also came with a little dad strength. Recently introduced to fatherhood, Kingsbury says the experience has helped keep him balanced on the back nine of his Hall-of-Fame career.
“Since becoming a dad — it’s been about a year and a half — I’m less hard on myself,” he admitted. “It’s not that skiing is more fun; it’s just different. I’m not more motivated, but I’m a bit more focused when I’m skiing. And when I come home, I’m less hard on myself. It’s really special to still be chasing my dream while being a dad.”
Mike Matheson shared similar feelings in an interview with the Canadiens content team in 2024.
“Ever since Hudson’s come along, I don’t think it’s a coincidence that I’ve played the best hockey of my career,” Matheson outlined. “Before then, I had a really hard time leaving things at the rink. Whether I play great or I don’t, at the end of the day he needs the best version of me as a dad when I come home. That helps me come home and park whatever happened at the rink. That doesn’t mean what’s going on at the rink doesn’t mean as much to me at all. I think it even ignites a bigger fire in me to be at my best knowing that I just want to make him proud, so that he’s proud to be able to call me his father.”
Many of Matheson’s teammates, like Jake Evans, Brendan Gallagher and Josh Anderson, subscribed to fatherhood within the last year. Others, like Alexandre Carrier, Noah Dobson, Nick Suzuki and Samuel Montembeault are preparing for it with babies on the way.
Kingsbury says he has crossed paths with some of them before and can relate to the pressure that comes with performing under scrutiny — something he has experienced for more than 15 years himself.
“You have to be a real pro and strong mentally to handle that every day and compete in front of a big crowd every night,” said the 2018 Northern Star Award (formerly the Lou Marsh Award) winner as Canada’s top athlete. “If I were a hockey player playing for the Habs, I’d try to use that as energy and feed off the fans’ passion.
“When you’re on a winning streak and playing well, it’s the best place in the world to play hockey.”
Of course, it’s not always sunshine and rainbows—it wasn’t for Kingsbury. Through the ups and downs of a demanding season, though, he kept reminding himself of one thing.
“I won everything, and I remember that feeling of winning—I just wanted to do it again. […] I feel lucky to go outside and ski, to practice what I love most. I kind of remind myself of that. I realize how lucky I am to still be living the dream and honestly, it’s even better than I ever imagined.”
It’s hard to fathom five Olympics medals and 143 World Cup podiums, but every win begins the same way––with a dream. Kingsbury, who announced his retirement in March, had one.
“I think it’s okay to dream and to see yourself doing something that might seem impossible,” he said. “So, what I want to say to the kids is: dream big. If you can see yourself doing something, then it’s possible.
It’s the same for kids who see themselves playing in the NHL, playing for the Montreal Canadiens, and winning the Stanley Cup. The more precise your dream is, the more it’ll happen. So, dream big, trust yourself, work hard and anything is possible.”
