The French delegation enters the arena. The day after the first curling events, the first French athletes begin their competition this Thursday, February 5. It is the French women’s ice hockey team which opens the ball and launches its group phase with a duel against Italy. The meeting is scheduled for 2:40 p.m. at the Arena Santagiulia, which was not yet completely finished a few days before the 2026 Winter Olympics.
Fifteenth in the world rankings, the Blues have a real chance to play against the Italians, 18th. They will then face Japan (8th), Sweden (7th) and Germany (9th) in Group B, three big players who also aim to qualify for the quarter-finals. This first duel against Italy could therefore already be decisive.
At around 7:30 p.m., the big air snowboard qualifications will take place, with the French Romain Allemand and Enzo Valax. At 19, the first will undoubtedly focus more on the slopestyle event, he who won during the World Cup round in Laax on January 18. These big air qualifications should, however, put him in the swing of things. The second will have higher ambitions in this event. He notably finished 6th in the last World Championships in the discipline in 2025.
The day will end with a first big shock in women’s ice hockey, with the meeting between Finland and Canada, two major contenders for the gold medal alongside the United States and the Czech Republic.
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