Josie Baff in her iconic pink helmet, a nod to her childhood and now synonymous with her historic snowboard cross gold at Milano Cortina 2026. Photo: Olympic Winter Institute of Australia.
Jindabyne — the small lakeside town at the heart of the Snowy Mountains — is shimmering in more ways than one as it honours its own Olympic gold medallist.
23-year-old Josie Baff wrote her name into Olympic history, claiming gold in the women’s snowboard cross, sparking jubilant celebrations in her home community and across the nation.
Her triumph was Australia’s second gold of the Games, coming less than 24 hours after fellow Southern NSW athlete Cooper Woods claimed an unlikely moguls gold.
In Jindabyne, locals gathered at the Jindabyne Bowling Club to watch as Baff, seeded 17th after qualifying, raced through three knockout heats — the quarterfinal, semifinal and final — ultimately crossing the line just 0.04 seconds ahead of Czech rival Eva Adamczykova in Livigno’s dramatic snowboard cross final.
Just as Jindabyne rallied behind its hometown hero with a sea of pink, dozens of Baff’s family, friends and teammates were in Italy to witness the moment firsthand, with many sporting bright-pink beanies.
The story behind the colour was as charming as the victory itself: As a child, Baff’s helmet was pink, her favourite colour, and it would become a personal trademark that earned her the nickname “Pinky”.
Baff’s path to Winter Olympic gold began long before Milano Cortina.
Born in Cooma and raised in East Jindabyne, she was immersed in alpine life from infancy.
According to the Olympic Winter Institute of Australia, she was skiing by age two and snowboarding by five, guided by her father, Peter Baff, an accomplished coach whose athletes include Scotty James, Alex ‘’Chumpy’’ Pullin, Jarryd Hughes and Valentino Guseli.
As a child, Josie watched Torah Bright, a Cooma native, claim halfpipe gold at the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver — an achievement that left a lasting impression on the seven-year-old aspiring snowboarder and set a benchmark she would one day match herself.
Her own rise began in earnest at the 2020 Winter Youth Olympics, where she became Australia’s first gold medallist.
It was then that Baff made the switch from her first love, ski racing, to focus fully on snowboard cross, a move that has paid off spectacularly and secured Australia’s first medal in this high-profile discipline.
At these Games, the only two Australian gold medals so far have come from Southern NSW, highlighting the strength of winter sport communities in towns and slopes beyond the major cities.
Baff and Woods share that distinction, but their connection goes beyond podiums.
The pair were classmates during winter schooling in Jindabyne and also crossed paths through junior surf lifesaving clubs on the South Coast.
Their friendship, built over years of snow, surf and shared competition, has been a constant source of support and encouragement.
Baff has said that seeing Woods stand atop the moguls podium the day before her own final was more than inspiration — it was a reminder of how local roots and long-term friendships can shape confidence at the highest level.
Back in Jindabyne, the watch party at the bowling club overflowed with cheers and hugs as news of Baff’s gold spread.
For a community that had followed her from the skifields of Perisher and Thredbo, through interschool competitions and international training, the moment was both familiar and extraordinary: a hometown champion standing atop the highest podium in her sport.
While Baff and Woods captured the headlines with gold, the men’s snowboard halfpipe final added another chapter to Southern NSW’s Olympic story.
While veteran Scotty James, from regional Victoria and whose career was honed on the NSW snowfields, earned silver — his third Olympic medal, narrowly behind Japan’s Yuto Totsuka — Guseli, 20, from Dalmeny, delivered a high‑amplitude run to finish fifth.
Guseli’s rise signals the next wave of Australian snowboarding talent, while James’s donation of a halfpipe at Thredbo leaves a lasting mark on the Snowy Mountains, giving young riders a world-class training venue at home.
In recognition of their Olympic triumphs, plans are underway to name a mogul run at Perisher after Woods, while locals are already speculating about what form of honour might follow for Josie Baff, including the possibility of a snow run in her name.
Although Baff and Woods have already claimed gold in their individual events, both still have opportunities to compete again on 15 February (AEDT) — Baff likely with her former Jindabyne neighbour Adam Lambert in the mixed snowboard cross team event and Woods in dual moguls alongside Charlotte Wilson, also from Jindabyne — keeping Southern NSW athletes firmly in the Olympic spotlight.
Veteran Laura Peel, 36, from Canberra, aims to add to her decorated career in women’s aerials despite a knee injury in training, while Reilly Flanagan, 21, also from Canberra, makes his Olympic debut in the men’s event.
Both compete in aerials qualifiers on 17 February (AEDT), carrying forward Australia’s proud legacy in freestyle skiing and rounding out a remarkable fortnight for Australian athletes on the world stage.
Original Article published by Edwina Mason on About Regional.
